Someone Unexpected
by Peace-Luv-Sherry
Summary: Gale is chosen as the boy tribute of District 12 and now It is up to Katniss and Gale to win the 74th annual Hunger Games,but will they survive?Maybe have a chance at falling in love...
1. The Reapings

** First of all I don`t own Suzanne Collins work,she does and please bare with me,the sequence of this story is way different from The Hunger Games because it is meant to be like that so please kindly review and I hope you Enjoy! ( :**

* * *

><p>"Gale Hawthorne!"<p>

The voice of Effie snapped me out of my thoughts and I watched as Gale made his way through the crowd.

"Let`s give it up for our tributes of district 12, Gale Hawthorne and Katniss Everdeen!"

Gale was now standing next to me observing the whole crowd. I glanced at him and forced myself a smile to the whole crowd. Nobody clapped instead they are silent and give us the three fingered salute of the district. "Congratulations and may the odds be even in your favor," Effie says.

Before we left district 12 I spoke to my mother and Prim. I told her to take very good care of Prim, that I won`t be there for her anymore and that there's no me now. I also say goodbye to my family and friends and tell them to wish me luck.

But now I'm on my way to the Capitol in a train with Gale sitting next to me. "I`ve never been on a train before. It's my first time on one," I say looking out the window.

"Me too,"Gale replies. "We should have done it you know? "

"Gale. We wouldn`t have made it 5 miles. You know they`d catch us, "I say with a sigh.

"It was still worth trying Catnip,"Gale says.

"Gale. We can`t run away from our problems. We need to learn how to face them,"I say not making any eye contact with him.

He nods, "Understandable"

For the rest of the ride we talk a little but not a lot. Mostly about how we`re gonna miss our families and friends, but that`s it. I wasn`t really in the mood for talking that much.

When we finally get to the Capitol the districts are isolated from each other to prevent an additional rebellion. Then we meet our support team which is, Haymitch, a former hunger games winner of district 12 who was at the reaping and was drunk, Effie, our wrangler and finally, Cinna and Portia our stylists.

Me and Gale are taken separately to the remake center to get ``fixed``.But I just think it`s just to make us look pretty.

I am naked, without any clothes and Cinna walks in studying me. He's making circles around me and observing my body. He nods, "Hello Katniss.I`m Cinna if you forgot. "I nod at him,"Yeah, I know. You're just here to make me look pretty"

"No. I'm here to help you make an impression,"he replies. We start talking about how it`s important to always make a first impression and how he`s here to help me. When we finally finish talking he leaves and it`s time for my makeover. First they wax my legs, which hurt a lot, then I'm scrubbed clean and they do my nails. Finally, my last remaining hairs are plucked clean and I`m done. But when I look in the mirror I don`t look like myself or even feel like myself. The only thing they left the same was my braided hair and that`s it. I wondered why.

Cinna walks in and compliments me on how beautiful I look and looks impressed.

"You must be hungry,let`s go eat,"Cinna says walking out the door. I follow him, "I don`t look the same Cinna "

"Katniss,this is the hunger games people are gonna care a lot about how you look and your appearance. Besides, you need to show you inner beauty too. "

I nod. "I'm only doing this for my family to stay alive. "

"That`s good because I hope you`re not afraid of fire. "

* * *

><p><strong>Please Kindly Review and I know it`s short but I hope you enjoyed ( :<strong>


	2. The Opening Ceremonies

"What do you mean? "

A few hours later I`m dressed in a weird outfit that ``represents` `District 12 and a cape .Cinna told me that he was planning on lighting the cape on fire.

I look at myself in the mirror and arch an eyebrow.

"I know it`s strange to you, but this is what everybody wants to see. Don`t worry about the flames, they won`t burn you or anything. They're just synthetic fire,"Cinna says. But I don`t trust him. I'll probably be dead before The Hunger Games even start.

"Remember Katniss, you always want to wow the crowd,"Cinna says grinning.

But before I can say anything Gale shows up wearing an identical costume as me. We could probably even be twins.

"Hey Catnip. Ready for the opening ceremonies? "

I shrug, "Not really... "

"Time to go!"

Me and Gale are quickly taken to the Remake Center and the openings are about to start. We get in the chariot, which is being pulled by four horses that are the color of coal black.

Cinna and Portia help us arrange our self's.

"I can`t believe they`re gonna light us up, "I whisper to Gale.

"Well believe it, Catnip,"he says shaking his head.

Then I suddenly wonder where`s Haymitch at.

"Hey, where`s Haymitch? "

"Probably getting drunk again somewhere. But I don`t really care Catnip. Let's just worry about _us _right now ok?"

"Ok"

A few minutes later the opening music begins to play and I watch as the tributes end up at the City Circle and are escorted into The Training Center where every tribute will stay until The Hunger Games start.

When it`s finally our turn to go, before we go out Cinna lights our capes on fire. I almost scream but don`t feel anything,he checks our capes and nods.

"Perfection,"he brushes off me and Gale`s outfit and grins.

"Remember to always smile and show no fear! Katniss, Gale you're gonna do great!, "he turns around but turns around again, "Oh! One last thing. Hold hands. Show them you guys aren`t enemies"

Gale quickly grabs my hand and nods at Cinna, "Will do! "

Then we start entering the city and I watch as the whole crowd claps and cheers for us. My heart stops for a second and I'm unsure of what to do.

"Catnip? Everthing alright? ,"Gale says squeezing my hand.

"Um, yeah... "Then my body starts to move and I wave to the crowd .Finally, when I get my confidence on, I wink at them, grin and even blow them kisses. I take a look at Gale and I see that he`s waving and grinning.

The crowd starts to go wild and they chant our names, again and again. The crowd then starts to throw roses at us and I keep on blowing them more kisses then before.

"Thank you! I love you all! ,"I say in a loud voice. I could feel Gale gripping my hands tightly and he gives me a kiss in my cheek. I'm a little surprised by it but I go with it and kiss him back.

"Awwww, "the crowd goes.

* * *

><p><strong>Ohhh wonder what`ll happen,review if you want more Katniss and Gale, Thanks for reading! ( :<strong>


	3. The Training Center

**Wow. You guys are awesome! Thanks for all the great reviews and I'm sorry if I rush a little,anyways you guys asked for Gale and Katniss so here it is (:**

* * *

><p>Finally, we`re done with The Opening Ceremonies and Effie`s taking us to The Training Center where we`ll be staying until The Hunger Games start.<p>

"So you press the button that says 12 and wait. That easy. "Effie says pressing the button 12 and looking at us.

Me, Gale and Effie are on the crystal elevator, at The Training Center, waiting to get to the 12th floor. While Effie is talking and saying things that don`t even make sense and aren`t even true, my mind wanders off and I start to think of the kiss Gale gave me at the openings.

"Gale…"I whisper.

"Yeah? "

"Hello?Katniss, Gale are you listening to anything I`m saying? "Effie says in an angry tone.

We nod and look at her.

"Anyways, as I was saying…"She continues to talk the whole elevator ride, but I still don`t pay any attention.

When I get to my room, at the 12th floor, I look around and make myself comfortable. There are so many things here that there aren`t in district 12, like, heaters that blow dry my body or a box that I just need to put my hand on, that untangles my hair by sending a current through my scalp.

I choose an outfit to wear and put it on.

"Dinner time! "Effie yells while knocking my door.

Great, because I`m hungry and I need to talk to Gale about the kiss.

I sit down at the dinner table next to Gale and compliment him on his outfit.

"Thanks Catnip and you look beautiful with that dress. "

I look down at my dress and thank him for the compliment.

Haymitch then shows up, cleaned up well and sits down.

As the servants serve us foods and drinks I take my chance to ask Gale about the kiss.

"Gale. What was that all about? At the openings? "I say taking a sip of wine.

"What? The grinning and waving? "Gale says thinking.

"No. Not that. The kiss".

"Oh,that…Um I was just listening to what Cinna said. You know, not show the crowd that we`re enemies and stuff. "

I nodded at him but I knew he was lying. I`ve known Gale for a very long time and already know when he`s lying to me. But why was he lying to me? Or was he really telling the truth?I was desperately seeking for answers.

For the rest of the dinner we plan our strategies and talk a little.

When we`re done eating cake we head to the sitting room and sit down to watch the replay of the opening ceremonies.

"Awww"Everyone says when we get to the part when Gale kisses my cheek.

Gale blushes a little and grins.

"Gale. What was that all about? "Effie asks when the replay`s done.

We all look at him for an answer.

"I just well…showing the crowd I don`t hate her,that I love her. "

Everyone`s eyes widened and we stared at Gale.

"You do? "Asks Haymitch.

"Yeah. "

"That`s good actually. Really, really good…this will attract the viewer's attention a lot…"

I liked Gale. But not in that type of way. I liked him as a really good friend, but not _loved _him.

We`re all silent for a long while and Haymitch breaks the silence.

"Well,Katniss, Gale tomorrow morning is the first training session. Meet me for breakfast and don`t be late. Now go get a good rest so that we can discuss."

I stood up and walked the corridor to my room and quickly walked inside, avoiding any talking with Gale.

"I wonder what happens now…"

* * *

><p><strong>Wow. Talk about, AWKWARD. Should Katniss fall for Gale too? If so then please Review! And let`s see if I can get reviews or no updates for a long while); Anyways, thank you to all of you who have already reviewed and I hope all of you guys enjoyed! Thanks (:<strong>


	4. Training Skills

**5 reviews in just one day?You guys are all awesome. Which is why I am still continuing with Gale and Katniss, I love those two!Anywho let`s not forget Suzanne Collins for Katniss,Gale and all of the characters in The Hunger Games ,of course she owns all of them so I thank her for giving me the idea for this story (: Well. Here it is:**

* * *

><p>"Well we don`t really mind if you coach us together, Haymitch."Gale says, looking at me for approval.<p>

I nod at him and at Haymitch while eating a sausage.

Today was training day. Me, Gale and Haymitch were eating breakfast, talking about our training and how it was going to be done. I didn`t really mind if Haymitch coached us together or not because me and Gale were really close and wouldn`t really go against each other. We just wouldn`t.

"Alright, so what are you two both good at doing? "

"Hunting. "We both say at the same time.

"We hunt with bows and arrows. "I say.

"How good are you two with bows and arrows?"Asks Haymitch.

"Well, actually…Katniss is the expert on hunting with bows and arrows. I`m really good with traps and snares. "Gale says.

"Gale is a genius with traps and snares. "I say, remembering all those times when we would go hunting and how he would set up a trap for animals to fall for.

"Katniss is also good with snares too."Gale says, not wanting to leave me out.

"I only know a few basic snares, but I`m better with bows and arrows. "I say.

Haymitch nods and finally speaks. "First of all, Katniss, I`m not so sure if there will be bows and arrows in the arena, but during your private session with the Game makers they will come in handy. Second of all, Gale, I am 100% sure your trapping skills will come in handy in terms of food. "

We both nod at him in understandment.

"Also, the both of you must stay together at all times._ No arguments._ "Haymitch says in a serious tone.

Once again we nod and head to our rooms.

When it's finally time for our training I meet Effie and Gale at the elevator and we go down to the training rooms.

The elevator ride is fast and the doors open to a gigantic gym with weapons and obstacle courses. But we`re the last ones to arrive (and apparently the only ones dressed the same), the other tributes are in a circle with their district number pinned on their shirts. Someone quickly pins me and Gale the number _12 _on our shirt and we hurry to the circle.

I listen to a woman named Atala who explains the training schedule and the rules. She then begins to read the list of the skill stations. While she does I look at the other tributes and compare them to Gale and me. Some of them look like they can kill me in a second, some are taller than me but I know I am stronger than they are.

Finally, when Atala is done the tributes head to grab the most dangerous looking weapons in the gym.

"Catnip, If you don`t mind we can tie some knots. "Gale says.

I nod at him. Since we`re both good with snares, why not?

We head to the station and tell the trainer we know about snares, especially Gale and he shows us a trap that we can use to hang a tribute at the arena. We easily learn how to do this and move on to another station.

"Archery? "I suggest to Gale.

He nods and we head to the archery station where the trainer is impressed at our skills with bows and arrows. Although I`m good with bows and arrows it never hurts for more practice.

* * *

><p><strong>Oh I forgot to say; there is a poll you guys can vote in of what you think so far of the story. And please, review, review, and review! It is free and will give me a smile! (: Oh! And thank you for reading!<strong>


	5. The Game Makers

**Ok so first of all Suzanne Collins owns everything, not me and I`m just gonna continue with Gale and Katniss just so you know, enjoy! (:**

* * *

><p>Me and Gale have been doing great with the stations the past few days but I need to thank Gale because he`s been very helpful with me recently. Like when I didn`t understand what I was doing wrong in a station he helped me out. As he did other tributes glared at us and sneered. It happened almost every day<p>

When the Game makers finally appear I notice they`re mostly looking at me and Gale, helping each other out. They often give us curious looks of to why we are helping each other out if we`re eventually going to have to kill each other in The Hunger Games. I ignore their looks and keep on focusing on the training.

The next day when It`s lunch all of the tributes eat together,Haymitch once again reminds us to stay together and to talk while eating our meals. But it`s not all that easy to find a topic to talk about because in just a few days many of us are going to die. Instead I just sit next to Gale like Haymitch told me to and eat my food.

"You`ve been doing great in the trainings Catnip."Says Gale, trying to start up a conversation.

I smile at him and nod. "I owe all the thanks to you."I think for a minute. Maybe now would be the perfect time to put my hands on top of his, so I do.

I turn my head to look at Haymitch and I watch as he grins at me and nods. "Perfect. "He mouths.

Gale nods and smiles at me. "Well, you've been a lot of help to me also Catnip."

I pretend to blush and I watch as we get a few stares from the room. I ignore them and start telling Gale about all those times we went hunting together. Gale laughs as I tell him a few funny moment and we get even more stares this time. I glance at Haymitch and he`s giving us a thumbs up and once again grinning.

The next day, when me and Gale are using the bows and arrows once again I notice a girl watching us. I think she was from District 11 .Rue,yes, that was her name.

"I see you`ve noticed Rue."Whispers Gale.

I nod at him and throw an arrow at the target. "She reminds me of Prim."

"Yeah,wanna move to another station to avoid any conflict?"

I laugh a little and nod. "Sure. She looks so intimidating."

We head to another station and I watch as Rue also joins us in. She's really good with plants, climbing and has very good aim, just like me. I am tempted to talk to Rue but I know I can`t, just to avoid any ``conflict`` with her. Also, who knows? Maybe Rue is one of those people who seem small but can kill you in a minute.

When we`re done we head to the 12th floor and eat some dinner. Everything seems so calm and relaxed and I wonder why that is.

"Good luck on tomorrow."Says Gale when we head to our rooms for sleep.

"Oh, right. You too."I say awkwardly.

He nods and I stay there to watch as he heads to his room.

"Goodnight."I say even though he can`t hear me.

The next day when it`s finally time for private sessions with the Game makers district 12 is the last ones to go and since I'm a girl I am the last tribute to go.

I watch as Rue leaves the room and me and Gale are the only ones left in the room.

"Well. I guess it`s just you and me now Catnip."Gale says.

"Yeah, good luck."I say.

We sit there silently until Gale`s name is called.

"Once again, good luck."I say as he stands up.

He nods and gives me a smile. "Same."

I watch as he leaves and wish him the best. Even though one of us was going to die in just a few weeks, we still weren`t enemies or anything like that. I enjoyed spending time with Gale and we swore never to be enemies, not even for The Hunger Games.

"Katniss Everdeen."Says a woman.

I stand up and walk into the gym. "Oh no."I whisper.

The Game makers look so tired and look like they want to get over with this. I wouldn`t blame them, I mean they had to go through 23 tributes already.

I bite my nails and head to the archery station. "Oh cool! New weapons!"I whisper.

They aren`t really new but I haven`t touched them or used them.

I set up my bow and arrow and aim for the target.

I bite my lip when the arrow misses the target. "Something must be wrong with this."I whisper and study the bow and arrow.

I quickly try again and again and again until I get the hang of it.

When I finally hit the target with the arrow I aim the arrow to a hanging light high above the gymnasium floor and watch as sparks burst out from it.

I turn to look at the Game makers and some are giving me thumbs up and nodding, while some aren`t even focusing on what I`m doing.

My jaw drops open and my whole face turns bright red. I know they`ve already seen 23 tributes, but really? Can`t they even pretend to care even one bit?

"Hello? I`m going to be dying in just a few weeks and you guys can`t even focus on me for even _one_ second?"I say as they put a roasted pig with an apple in its mouth on their table.

"They`re ignoring me!"I whisper.

"UGH!"Without a second thought I send an arrow at the pig's apple.

The Game makers scream and fall off from their seats as the apple gets pinned on the wall.

I cross my arms and set the bow and arrow down. The Game makers stare at me for a second with wide eyes.

"Well, thank you for your support and time."I fake a sweet smile and storm out of the gym.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and once again theirs a poll of my story if you still haven't voted yet! Any who, review, review and review! (:<strong>


	6. The Results

**There is Katniss and Gale in this chapter so enjoy!Also,Suzanne Collins owns everything not me! (;  
><strong>

* * *

><p>Tears fill my eyes as I pass Haymitch, Effie and Gale.<p>

"Katniss!"They call out at me as I walk in my room and lock myself in there.

I start to bite my nails and cry as I think about what will happen now. Will I be out of the Hunger Games? Will they kill my mother and Prim for what I have just done? And what about the people from district 12? What will they think of me,that I`m a failure?

"Katniss, open up. It's just me...Gale."Gale. He might be the only person here who must know what I`m going through right now. But should I let him in? Will he make me feel better like he`s been doing the past few weeks? I think about this for a minute.

"Katniss, I know you can hear me…"Says Gale once I don`t answer for a long while and continues to knock even harder.

I suddenly begin to cry, more this time, and can`t stop myself.

"Katniss!"I hear the door open and wipe my tears away.

Gale closes the door behind him and walks in the room putting a pin in his pocket.

"Leave me alone!"I manage to say.

"Katniss, what happened?"Gale says, pulling me into a hug.

"I-I" Words can`t seem to come out of my mouth and I take a deep breath."The game makers-I shot an arrow at them."

"Why?"He strokes my hair and I feel much calmer than before.

"Because they weren`t paying any attention to me! My life is on the line right now Gale!"I say pulling away from the hug and making eye contact with him.

"Both of our lives are on the line right now Catnip, remember that..."

"I know, but what about Prim, my mother, District 12 and-"

"Catnip "Gale interrupts."Focus on yourself right now."

"But-"I look away from him, a tear escaping my eye.

What was going on with me? I was never like this.

"But nothing."He says while wiping my tear away.

"Thanks Gale."I say and give him a kiss in the cheek.

"Anytime Catnip."He says in a surprised tone.

"Katniss, Gale, dinner time."It was Effie`s voice and she was knocking on the door.

"Coming! "Calls out Gale.

I hear Effie walk away and take a deep breath.

"Everything will be ok Catnip. Let's just head to dinner and see what happened."

I nod. "Let me just wash my face."My face was sticky and my eyes were red once I got to the bathroom. I take some soap and wash my whole face until it`s clean.

"Does my face look like I didn`t cry? "I ask Gale with a smile.

"Yes Catnip."He says, laughing a little.

We walk outside my room and head to the dining room, where everyone's waiting at the table, including Cinna and Portia.

Me and Gale sit next to each other and I begin to drink some soup silently, avoiding any talking.

Oh now I really did it! Haymitch and the other adults are going to be furious once they find out what I did. They might even give up on me for good, I wouldn`t blame them if they did.

I stir my soup and look at it.

''Alright, how was it?''Asks Haymitch.

I open my mouth to speak but Gale stops me.''The Game makers really couldn`t care less of what I did so I took the pig they were about to eat and hung it, that got their attention.''

No wonder they brought another pig to eat. The Game makers really seemed not to care at all about us.

''Good job Gale.''Says Haymitch.''And you Katniss?''

Somehow with Gale saying what he did makes me feel better and I no longer feel bad for what I did to the Game makers. ''I shot an arrow at the Game makers''

Everyone drops their food and look at me with wide eyes, except Gale.''YOU DID WHAT?''Asks Effie, with horror in her voice.

''I just shot an arrow at their direction, well actually I shot an apple out of their pigs mouth because, like Gale said they really couldn`t care less of what I did so that got their attention. It's really not a big deal!''I say as I slam my hand on the table.

Gale puts a hand on my shoulder and I try to calm myself down.

''Ok, ok what did they say?''Asks Cinna, trying not to freak out.

''I don`t know! I dismissed myself and left after that.''

''Well, nothing to do now.''Says Haymitch as he continues to eat his food.

''But what`ll happen to me?''I ask, a little worried.

''Well nothing I guess, since the viewers need to know what you did first and kicking you out of the games wouldn`t really make that much sense to them,it`d just be a waste of time.''

All of a sudden I feel better and think that maybe I just might have a chance at winning The Hunger Games.

''How did they react?''Asks Cinna.

''It was unexpected to them, they looked surprised and shocked.''

''They deserved it; it's their job to pay attention to us.''Says Gale.

Effie nods in agreement.

''I think I`m going to get a low score.''I say.

''No you won't, maybe that`s what the Game makers needed, someone to grab their attention.''Says Portia with positivity in her voice.

''Maybe they needed more than that.''Says Gale''You should`ve aimed the arrow at them.''

''Sorry, maybe next time.''I laugh and continue eating my food, relieved that nothing will happen to me or my family.

When everybody`s done eating we all head to the sitting room to watch the scores announced on television.

I watch as they show a photo of the tribute and their score below it. The scores are mostly fives and sevens and I hope that I get a score higher than that.

When District 12 finally comes up last, as always. Gale`s score is an _11_.Not bad, at least one of us did good. As my face comes up I try not to show how nervous I am.

The next thing I know, the number _12 _appears.

* * *

><p><strong>SPECIAL THANKS TO:<strong>

**Ellenka**

**Cloud-Lover26**

**FOR REVIEWING ALOT,THANK YOU (:**

**Don`t forget to Review for more! (:**


	7. Long Preperations

**Disclaimer: Suzanne Collins owns everything, not me (:**

* * *

><p>"Something must be wrong…they must`ve made a mistake…"I say and look at Haymitch for an answer.<p>

"Hmm, I guess maybe that`s what they need in the arena. A girl like you."Haymitch says and grins.

Cinna nods."Oh come on Katniss, don`t look that surprised. You know you gave it your best and look; you earned the highest score a tribute can earn."

"I`m not surprised. I just didn`t expect a _12_."I say lying to myself a bit.

"Then smile!"Says Portia and gives me a hug.

I smile and glance at Gale who`s sitting alone and silently watching me.

"Gale, congratulations to you too."I say, feeling a little bad for him. Poor Gale, nobody was giving any attention to him.

He nods and stands up."Thanks Catnip, same to you too."I watch as he leaves and hate myself.

Did Gale hate me now? Were we now enemies, or was this the first step in becoming enemies? Was our friendship finally over?

I yawned and told the adults I was tired. They congratulated me again and said I can head to bed so that they can discuss. As I did I tried to push my thoughts about me and Gale now becoming enemies away and tried to sleep. I kept on rolling on my bed until I finally started dreaming.

When the sun finally comes out I wake up and shower, forgetting all about what happened yesterday. When I`m finally done changing I head to the dining room, where Haymitch, Effie and Gale are waiting for me.

"Good morning Katniss!"Says Effie as I take a plate and load it with food.

"Morning, so what`s new? " I ask Haymitch as I sit down at the table and begin to eat my food.

"Me and Effie have decided to coach you two separately."

I try not to show how I feel about us being coach separately and nod slowly. "Ok."

"What`s the schedule? "Gale asks.

"Katniss you`ll have 8 hours with Effie and Gale you`ll have 8 hours with me."

"Wait.8 hours? Why?"I ask curiously.

"Katniss save your questions for Effie".Haymitch says and points to Effie.

Effie`s smiling and nodding at me and I am more confused than ever. We head to my room where she makes me put on a long dress and high heels. I don`t know how Effie manages to walk in them everywhere.

"Remember, chin up, smile and never show how you really feel."

"You mean about these high heels?"I say and take off my heels.

Effie smacks the back of my hand and puts the high heels back on me."Don`t take off the heels!"

I groan and sit down.

"Katniss, stay with me."Effie says and grabs 3 books.

I stand up and nod. I'm not going to give up, not on Prim and my mother.

"Chin up."Effie says and puts 3 books on my head.

I hold my chin up and try to balance the books on my head."What`s the books for?"I ask as the books fall off from my head.

Effie picks up the books and puts it back on my head."To see if you`re walk is perfect, which it`s not."

I roll my eyes and try to walk without letting the books fall."My walk is perfect."

"Not at all. We have a lot of work to do."Effie says with a sigh.

Effie takes the books from me and shows me how to walk without letting the books fall, which is not easy at all. I try once again and Effie fixes my posture. I hold my chin up and walk without letting the books fall."Don`t forget to smile!"Effie says. I smile and continue walking with the books on my head until Effie says I can put the books down.

"Very good Katniss."She looks at her watch and smiles."Time to switch gears."

I take a look at her watch and notice that 4 hours have already passed. Just 4 more hours to go. Suddenly I start to wonder what Gale and Haymitch are doing.

Effie sits down and looks at me."Katniss, we need to find a way to make you more feminine like."

I shake my head from my thought."What?"

"You know exactly what I`m talking about Katniss."

"Not really."I say confused.

"I`m saying you need to be more girly as in,wear make-up, high heels and dresses."

"Actually I am wearing all of that right now."

"Yes, but only because I made you. And also you need to learn how to calm down, Katniss."

"What`s that supposed to mean?"

"I`m saying your temper rises really quickly for no reason at all. You need to learn how to control that."

"I do not!"I say almost yelling.

Effie nods and looks at me.

"Fine. Teach me how to control my temper."I say and cross my arms.

Effie shakes her head. "I am here to get you ready for the interviews, not give you advice on your anger issues. But I will tell you one thing, just hold it back."

Hold it back? It`s not as easy as it seems. Holding your true feelings back isn`t easy at all.

I nod at Effie and stay silent.

"Now, let's see on how you answer questions."Effie says and begins asking me questions.

I try to answer the questions with a smile always on my face, but I just can't. I'm lying to my own self when I do. Being in The Hunger Games isn`t something to smile about unless you win it.

"Stop!"Effie says as she rubs her forehead.

"What?"

Effie looks exhausted and tired."The answers you`re giving me…they`re just too…"She groans and shakes her head.

"I`m just saying the truth."I say. What else did Effie want me to say? I was just keeping it all real.

"Yes. That's it! All you need to do is lie."Effie says with hope in her face.

"I can`t. "

"Why not? "

"Because I`m bad at lying."It was the truth, I was bad.

"Ok,ok,let`s try this, you ask me the questions and I answer them,and you watch and learn."

I nod and take the role of the interviewer."How do you feel about being in The Hunger Games? "

"I feel very happy because I`ve met lots of great people here like Cinna, Portia and I just feel like we`re one big family. "Effie says and gives me a winning smile.

Effie made it look easy but at least she wasn`t the one who was about to die in just a few days.

I continue to ask Effie questions and she answers them all in a winning fashion and a smile. When I`m finally done with the questions it`s her turn to ask me the questions and I try my best to answer them like she does.

"Well. At least the lying has improved."Effie says and stands up once she`s done.

"It`s not that easy."I say as I clutch my fist.

"It is. You just say it isn`t."She sighs and looks at me."How about this, try to find the positive sides of the answers. Not the negatives."Effie wishes me good luck and leaves my room.

That night I order dinner at my room and try not to throw the dishes at the wall and scream.

Find the positive sides? How am I supposed to find the positive sides when my own ``friends`` are betting money on how long I will last in the Hunger Games!

I try to calm myself down and head to bed. Tomorrow were the real interviews and Cinna was my last hope. Effie was done with me.

When the sun finally rises my prep team knocks on my door and I open it. They then start working on me by making my skin glow, stenciling patterns on my arms, painting flame designs on my twenty nails and weaving strands of red into a braid.

As my prep team continues making me into a real life coal I start to think about Gale. Were they dressing him just like me? Also, how was he doing with Haymitch yesterday? Did he miss me? Because I sure missed him!

Cinna enters the room holding what looks like my interview dress and he orders me to close my eyes. I close my eyes and my prep team helps me put on the dress (which weighs a lot) on. I then blindly step in my high heel shoes, which are like 2 inch shorter than the one Effie made me wear and everyone goes silent.

"Open your eyes."Cinna says.

I open my eyes and look at myself in the mirror. My jaw drops and I cover my mouth. For the first time ever, I look _beautiful._

Everyone stares at me and clap.

"Twirl."Cinna says.

I twirl in circles and Cinna dismisses the team. As they leave they tell me I look gorgeous and beautiful and I thank them.

"Are you ready for the interview, now? "Cinna asks when everyone finally leaves.

I shake my head."Effie says I need to lie, but I just can`t."

Cinna thinks about this for a minute."How about you be yourself? "

"Myself? No way, I can`t."

"Why not? You said it yourself, you can`t lie and being yourself isn`t lying."

"Yes but-"

"Just be honest."Cinna interrupts."Everyone loves you Katniss, so don`t worry."

I nod at him and watch as he leaves the room.

* * *

><p><strong>Thanks for reading! (:<strong>


	8. The Interviews

**Disclaimer: Suzanne Collins owns everything as you all ; I hope you guys enjoy this chapter (:**

* * *

><p>"GALE!"I run over to him and hug him.<p>

The whole District 12 crowd is at the elevator and everyone looks well-dressed. Especially Gale, with his black suit and touch of ``flames.``

"Catnip"Gale takes a good look at me and grins."You look gorgeous."He says without breaking the hug.

"Thanks, you too Gale."I say.

"Stop hugging! You`re going to ruin each other's outfit!"Yells Effie and breaks the hug as we enter the elevator.

"Effie, let them. Remember what we discussed…"Cinna says.

Effie sighs and nods. "Right, a happy pair…"

Gale puts an arm around me and I put on my best smile as the elevator opens.

"Good luck!"Everyone wishes me and Gale as we line up to take the stage.

My hand begins to sweat and I begin to shake as we step on stage.

"Catnip? "Gale asks, behind me.

"Yeah?"I respond.

"Are you okay?"Gale asks with a worried tone.

I nod and take my seat, trying not to appear nervous and focus on something else.

"Caesar Flickerman"I say in a low voice.

He was the host of the interviews and has been for the past years or so. I watch as he hops on stage and begins telling the crowd some jokes to warm them up.

The girl tribute from District 1, looking sexy and beautiful, unlike me joins Caesar for her interview and I try to take mental notes on how she`s responding to the questions. She's doing very well on the questions and I begin to doubt I`ll do better than her.

After 3 minutes the buzzer rings and it`s the next tribute`s turn. I can`t continue watching the other tributes because then I`ll copy some of the strategies they`re using and I want to be different from everybody else. Also, the closer it is to my turn the more nervous I get.

I spot Haymitch in the crowd and he looks between me and Gale. By the look in his eyes, he wants us to act like a couple.

"Now?"I mouth.

Haymitch nods and points to Gale.

I silently groan and turn to face Gale."Gale, I missed you."I say.

"So did I."Gale says.

We get some stares from the other tributes and we ignore them.

"What did Haymitch make you do yesterday?"I ask and put my hands on top of his. My hands were still sweaty but Gale rubbed off the sweat with his thumb. I was no longer sweating or shaking when he did.

Gale shrugs."He made me say jokes and said to share those jokes to the crowd when I get interviewed."

I watch as Thresh, the boy tribute from District 11 goes on stage,those 3 minutes pass fast I think and nod. Wait that was it? Just make jokes? Nothing more? Gale was lying to me…

"Katniss Everdeen"It was finally my turn to go now, my last chance to make an impression before The Hunger Games start.

"Good luck Catnip!"Gale says as I stand up. I quickly give him a kiss on the cheek and make my way to the stage, with my chin up, walking just like how Effie thought me many hours how to and shake Caesar`s hand.

"Katniss, tell me about yourself" Caesar says.

About myself? What should I tell him? Should I lie or tell the truth?

I look at the crowd and find Effie who`s mouthing, "Smile!"

I smile and I suddenly know what to say."Aww Caesar I don`t like talking about myself a lot but since you insist… "

Caesar and the crowd both laugh."She is so cute!"Caesar points to me and smiles.

What? All of a sudden I was ``cute``? That was not my approach.

When Caesar catches his breath he says,"That`s what I like about you Katniss, you don`t like to talk about yourself and like to put others first. That's very mature of you."I nod."Now, what you did there at the reapings was much unexpected of you and everyone wants to know why you did it and how you feel about it."

Prim. He was talking about what I did when Prim was chosen and I volunteered.

"I…well…you know wanted to protect my sister. I didn`t want to see her get hurt in The Hunger Games. I panicked…"I say and miss Prim.

Tears feel like going down my cheeks but I hold them back. Not here, not now.

"That`s really brave of you,would you do anything for her?"

"Yeah, if it means to die for her, then of course."I search through the crowd and Cinna`s nodding at me.

_Just be yourself _I say in my mind.

"Wow that says a lot about you Katniss, which leads me to my next question…what was your reaction to that _12 _in your training score?"It`s amazing how Caesar switched from a very sad subject to a very happy one in just a second.

I arch an eye brow at Caesar and look at him in a funny way.

The crowd and him laugh. I smile and put on my best face.

"Oh Katniss"he takes a deep breath and turns his attention back to me."So you were shocked?"

"Yeah!"I say and look at the crowd with a, _didn`t I just make a point of that already?_ look and find myself laughing too.

The crowd loves me and I`m more relaxed than I was before.

"Ok so you got the highest score a tribute can get and what were other people`s reaction to that?"Caesar says once everyone is calmed down.

"They were proud of me and happy."I shrugged as if it wasn`t a big deal.

"That`s good to hear, you have a very supportive team."

I nod and my 3 minutes are up."Oh, looks like your time is up."Caesar takes my hand and raises it up."Ladies and gentle man, Katniss Everdeen from District 12!"The crowd claps and I can see Cinna is giving me a thumbs up."Good luck on The Hunger Games Katniss."Caesar gives me a kiss on the cheek and I return it and head over to sit down.

Those were the longest 3 minutes of my life. I hope Gale does well.

I watch as Gale shakes Caesar`s hand and he begins acting charming. I can see some of the girls in the crowd are giving him dreamy looks and pressing their hands to their chests. I think Gale`s real approach was just being dreamy and charming because even I was falling for him.

Gale then talks about his skills with traps and snares, jokes around with the crowd a little and then discusses about his training score.

"So tell me Gale, Is there something going on with you and Katniss?"Asks Caesar and my full attention turns to Gale only.

"I love you!"Screams out a girl from the crowd.

Gale smiles at the girl and winks at her, acting dreamy."There have been so many girls that I`ve met, but the only girl that I find beautiful and I love so much is Katniss…"

* * *

><p><strong>You see that button there where it says Review this chapter? Just click that button and review if you want me to continue (: It's so easy (: Any who, Thank you for reading and if you want me to continue just review and tell me what you think. Other than that, have a Happy New Year and a good day (:<strong>

**-Sherry ( :**


	9. Last Goodbyes

**Thank you soooo much for the awesome reviews guys. I hope all of you had a Happy New Years and of course Suzanne Collins is the wonderful lady who owns The Hunger Games and I hope you guys enjoy (:**

* * *

><p>"…She`s just not like the other girls. She's different, you know?"Says Gale and looks at Caesar.<p>

The crowd goes aww and some girls in the crowds' expression have saddened.

But I couldn`t help to think if Gale was lying. I mean what if he was just listening to Haymitch and acting as if he _loved _me? No, no he couldn't. When we were watching the opening ceremonies he confessed he did _love_ me. So was Gale lying or not? I had to talk to him after his interview, and more importantly, I had to find out the real truth.

"Well I hope things work out with you and Katniss, Gale."Caesar says and the three minutes are finally up for Gale.

Gale returns to his seat and we stand for the anthem.

What happens now? Will this affect me and Gale in The Hunger Games? There will be a lot of awkwardness between us if it does, especially since we are both from the same District and known each other for a very long time now. But...It didn`t make sense. Why would Gale confess now, before one of us was about to die in The Hunger Games? It was all so confusing.

After the anthem, I head to the elevators and wait for one just like all of the other tributes. But I avoid Cinna, Portia, Haymitch, Effie and Gale. Too much has happened today and I didn`t want it to get even worst.

When the elevator opens I walk in and punch floor _12 _with my knuckles. I then notice Rue is right next to me. She's wearing a dress that represents District 11(Agriculture) and her hair is well done. I think she was following me, just like when I was training with Gale. I wondered why.

Two tributes leave the elevator and I`m left alone with Rue."How old are you?"I ask her. Rue was small and probably the youngest tribute here but how old was she?

"12.I`m the youngest tribute here."Rue says and smiles.

Although I`m not really in a good mood I smile back at her and nod."For a 12 year old you`re really strong. I've seen you; you've got a lot of skills."I say.

"Thank you and so do you."She responds with a grin.

If Rue was another tribute we wouldn`t be talking to each other right now, just to avoid any "conflicts" with each other. But Rue was young and didn`t really mind talking to me, she looked like she`d been wanting to talk to me for a long time now.

The elevator stops at the _11__th _floor and before Rue walks out she turns to me and says,"Good luck on The Hunger Games Katniss."

"Good luck to you too Rue."I say and give her the three fingered salute of my District.

Rue nods and gives me what is the District _11 _salute. I don`t think I`ve ever seen someone do the District _11_ salute and didn`t know they had one, but I nod at Rue as the elevator door closes.

When the elevator door opens to the _12 _floor everyone`s waiting for me.

"Katniss, what happened? Did you get lost?"Effie says.

"No! I just wanted to be alone."I say and cross my arms.

"What the hell were you thinking Katniss?I told you to stay with Gale every damn minute!"Haymitch says and I flinch a little at the tone of his voice.

"What Haymitch is trying to say is that now that Gale confessed about his love for you, we don`t want you two separate."Cinna says in a calmer tone than Haymitch.

"Gale`s lying."I say without even thinking about the words before I said them.

"What? No I`m not, It's the truth Catnip. I do love you."Gale says.

There it was again, the L word. But by the way Gale blushed when he said it; I could tell he was telling the truth, everything was just a misunderstanding.

"Well, there you go Catnip."Haymitch says with a hint of laugh.

"Don`t call me Catnip."I say.

"Alright, alright, I bet it`s the hunger that`s making you angry. Let's eat some dinner."Haymitch says and leads everyone to the dining room where me and Gale will be eating for the last time before The Hunger Games start, tomorrow.

I sit down next to Gale and he whispers in my ear,"Eat all you can now Catnip because once The _Hunger _Games start it`s back to reality."

"What do you mean _back _to reality?"I say and can`t help but smile a little.

"The Hunger Games is kind of like our life already, with the staying alive part."Gale says and we both laugh.

I was glad to know that there wasn`t going to be any awkwardness between us because I was now starting to have feelings for Gale…

When dinners over we head to the sitting room and watch the replay of the interviews. Gale is his charming and dreamy self in the interviews and I am my own self.

As the screen goes off there's and awkward silence in the room. This was it. Tomorrow were The Hunger Games. This was probably me and Gale`s last time with everyone here. This was also our last chance to say our final good bye`s to everyone.

We all stand up and Effie turns to me and Gale."I promised myself I wouldn`t cry…but I`m going to miss you two so much."Effie hugs the both of us and we pat her back."Just, just don`t die." Effie says and pulls away from the hug.

Don`t die? That`s it? Effie was the weirdest person here…

When Effie walks out the room to go cry, Haymitch laughs and shakes his head.

"So, any last words before we die?"Gale says.

Haymitch shrugs and nods."Stay away from the other tributes; keep your distance from them. Especially at the Cornucopia, when the gong goes off. Trust me, that`s the last place you wanna be in…too much blood and killing."

"That`s it?"Gale asks.

Haymich thinks about this for a minute."Oh, the second thing you must do after you have your distance from those crazy-killing animal tributes is get water."

We nod in understanding and Haymitch wishes us good luck and leaves,Cinna and Portia don`t need to wish us good luck just yet because they were going to be the ones who will be right next to us before we are launched into the arena. So me and Gale are the only ones left in the sitting room.

"I hope The Hunger Games doesn`t interfere with our friendship."I say and frown.

"It won`t Catnip, trust me, it just won`t."Gale says with determination in his voice.

"So you`re saying if we`re the only two tributes left you won`t kill me?"I ask.

"Why would I?"Gale asks.

I shake my head."Just wondering. Any ways, good luck on The Hunger Games."

But to my surprise Gale ignores what I just said and says,"I would never hurt you Catnip. You are the last person in the world who I would hurt."

I hug him and lightly kiss his cheek."I know you wouldn`t."

Portia walks in the sitting room and puts her hands on her hips."What are you two still doing awake?"She says with a smile.

Me and Gale blush and we both stand up."We were just saying our final good bye`s."I say.

Portia nods."Ok, but tomorrow`s a big day and you two have to wash off everything from your bodies."She laughs and points at my arms that are still stenciled with patterns.

I nod."Good luck Gale."I say and head to my room. I can`t believe I forgot all about the makeup-up and the dress on me and I`m happy to take it all off when I get to my room. I scrub off everything from my body and wash my hair (which is really hard). When I`m done showering I wrap a towel on me and look at myself in the mirror. This was me, Katniss Everdeen the girl who volunteered to save her own sisters life, the girl who decided to just be her own self in the interviews and not someone else, the girl who was about to die in just a few weeks or even days…

I push away those thoughts from my head and put on a nightgown. Before I head to bed I braid my hair, just like something Katniss Everdeen would do and try to fall asleep. I toss and turn on my bed and finally decide to wake up. I couldn`t sleep, I was too anxious to fall asleep just now.

A knock on my door startles me and I ask who is it."Catnip, it`s me, Gale."Gale says softly.

I quickly head over to my door and open it."Gale? What are you doing awake?"I ask as he sits on the edge of my bed.

"I couldn`t sleep and so I knew you wouldn`t be asleep too."Gale says and looks at me.

I close the door and sit next to him."How`d you know?"I ask.

"What? That you`d be awake?"Asks Gale and I nod."Well, what tribute wouldn`t be anxious for tomorrow?"He says.

"Many…"I say.

"Well none of them are no match for us."Gale says. But even he doesn`t believe his own self. There are so many other tributes that are taller than us, weigh more than us and are stronger than us.

When there`s a long silence between us, Gale breaks the silence and says,"We should`ve done it you know."He was talking about running away before the reaping.

I try not to groan and give this some thought. Maybe he was right, maybe running away from our problems wasn`t a very bad .No,I shook my head and turned to face him."No, Gale that would have been a bad idea. We would`ve died in a minute and we wouldn`t have made it that far."

Gale looks up at ceiling and responds,"Catnip, I`d rather die free then die forced."

Die forced? What was he talking about?

"Hm?"I ask.

"I`m saying I`d rather die doing something I wanna do then doing something I don`t wanna do."Gale says and closes his eyes for a minute.

Oh, now I understood what he meant."I agree.I`d much rather die where I`m from, District _12_."I say and rub my eyes.

Gale stands up."My point exact. Any who, good luck tomorrow and hopefully this isn`t our last good bye."

I nod and wish him good luck too. When Gale leaves my room I stay up for like five minutes and try to fall asleep. Images of each tribute are going through my head and I doze off to sleep.

Like Effie would say,_ tomorrow was a big, big, day!_

* * *

><p><strong>Soooo I hope you guys enjoyed it and yeah, we`ll see what happens tomorrow in The Hunger Games. Now do it, click the Review Button! If you love Gale you`ll click it. (;<strong>


	10. Before The Hunger Games

**Ok so this is the last chapter before The Hunger Games officially start but after this chapter it`s all going to be The Hunger Games, but before you begin reading let`s all remember the one and only Suzanne Collins who wrote this awesome book and now back to this chapter…**

* * *

><p>When it`s finally morning Cinna gives me a simple outfit to wear and he leads me to the roof where a hovercraft drops down a ladder and I place my hands and feet on it. I hold on tight and I feel glued to the ladder when I do. It's as if I`m frozen or something but I ignore it and I`m lifted safely inside but still I couldn`t move. Before I react to the fact that I am as hard as coal a woman appears holding a needle in one hand. "Katniss stay still I'm just gonna insert you your tracker."She says and inserts the needle on my arm.<p>

Even though I`m frozen the pain of the needle inserting the tracking device on my arm hurts. The tracking device was for the Gamemakers to track my every move and they wouldn`t want to lose a tribute, now would they?

When the woman is done inserting the tracker on my arm with the needle she leaves and I am finally able to move and I am released from the ladder. The reason why they glued me to the ladder was just in case I ran away but even though I wanted to do so I knew the right thing to do was follow instructions. The ladder then drops again to retrieve Cinna from the roof and I am led to a room where breakfast is made for us already. I try to eat as much as I can fit into my stomach and my mind starts to wonder what`s Gale doing. He was with Portia in a separate hovercraft and here I am eating breakfast with Cinna ready to die in just a few weeks.

As the hovercraft finally lands I am more nervous than ever. I promised Prim I was going to win The Hunger Games and that`s how it was going to be,but what if I don`t? Me and Cinna head back to the ladders and the ladders lead us down into a tube underground where catacombs lie beneath the arena. We head to "my room"for my preparations and I just can`t help but worry about how will the arena look this year. Will it be swampy, dry, snowy or wet? I try hard to push those thoughts away from my mind and take a shower. When I'm done showering I feel like throwing up because of the breakfast I ate this morning .I over ate breakfast just to make sure I wasn`t that hungry once I got to the arena but the food was making its way up my throat. I ignore the feeling to throw up and carefully brush my teeth.

When I'm done I head to Cinna and he braids my hair. The clothes every tribute needs to wear in the arena arrives and I put them on over my naked body, Cinna takes out a gold mocking jay pin from his pocket and pins it on my outfit when I`m done changing into my clothes.

"Where`d you? - "Cinna interrupts me and says, "Secret."I nod and study the pin on me.

It was my mother's pin, but how did he get it?

"It took me a lot of work to get this pin through, it wasn`t very easy. But at the end they decided to be kind and let you wear it. "Cinna says and adjusts the pin on me."Alright walk around and see if the clothes fit you comfortable. "

I walk around and swing my arms until I see the clothes are comfortable. "Yeah, it's comfortable. "I say and nod.

"Well, now we sit and wait. "Says Cinna.

I sit down on a couch and I can feel the food from breakfast threatening to come up my throat. I swallow and I try to stay focused on something other than wanting to throw up. Cinna sees something wrong with me and asks,"Katniss are you alright?"I look down at my nails and nod at him.

Cinna can see I`m lying and stands up. He sits next to me and tilts my chin up so that I can look at him."How do you feel? What`s going through your mind right now? "I couldn't lie to Cinna, he was one of the person here who hadn`t disappointed me, other than Gale.

"I don`t feel very well. I feel nauseous."I say and place my hands on my stomach.

Cinna nods."Do you want water?"

I nod and a few minutes later someone brings me a glass of water. I take shaky sips of water and Cinna notices my shaking.

"You didn`t answer my second question. What's going through your mind right now?"Cinna asks.

What was going through my mind right now? Many things were going through my mind right now that I didn`t know where to start.

"My family, District 12 and Gale…"I blurt out.

"What`s worrying you about your family, District 12 and Gale?"He asks with curiosity.

"I promised Prim I would win The Hunger Games and there`s a low chance I will."I say and set the glass of water down.

"What makes you think there`s a low chance that you will?"Cinna looks interested in this topic and his full attention is on me.

"Have you seen the tributes? Many of them are stronger than me."I respond.

"So?"He asks.

"Well…"I trail off.

Cinna had a point. Only because some tributes were stronger than me didn`t mean anything. Size doesn`t matter or anything like that. Take Rue for example, she might be the youngest tribute here but has impressing skills.

I nod at him. "You have a point."

Cinna nods."Never let others appearances fool you."

Hearing this come from Cinna confused me a bit because wasn`t Cinna`s job, make my appearances look better? Instead of questioning Cinna I keep my mouth shut just like how Effie taught me to do and nod once again."Also what`s worrying me about District 12 is that I feel as if I lose The Hunger Games I am not giving a good example to others. They look up to me…and Gale."

"True they do look up to you and Gale which is why everywhere you go you must represent District 12 now that you`re in The Hunger Games. "

"I always represent District 12."I say.

"Yes you do and I helped with that by coming up with what outfits you were going to wear like in the interviews and when I made your outfits I always asked myself, what represent District 12-"

"Coal"I interrupt.

Cinna nods."Yes, exactly and-"

"Mining"I blurt out.

Cinna slowly nods. "You know a lot about District 12, Katniss."

It was rude to interrupt Cinna but I couldn`t stop myself, it was obvious."Yes, and sorry for interrupting you…you were saying?"

Cinna shakes his head."No, no, _you _were saying?"

I tilt my head. "What?"

"Continue; what`s worrying you about Gale?"Cinna asks.

Oh Gale…so many things were happening between me and him but how could I explain to Cinna?

"Everything"I say. "I don`t want him to die...like this. Gale and I have a strong bond together and if he dies, then I die."I say with determination in my voice.

Cinna`s eyes widen."Gale told me the same thing."

"I know he did."It didn`t really surprise me if Gale said that because he didn`t have to say it, he already showed it to me…a long time ago.

"Wait, he told you? "Cinna asks.

I shake my head."He doesn`t need to say it to me, he needs to show it to me."

"Time to prepare for launch."Says a female voice.

Me and Cinna stand up but I can`t help but hug him "Thank you for everything. "I whisper.

He pats my back and hugs me tighter. "You're welcome Katniss, and if I could bet, all my money would be on you and on you only."

When we`re done I head over to where I am supposed to be launched and hold Cinna`s hand.

"Remember, leave the Cornucopia as fast as possible and find water, if you want you can find an ally."Cinna says.

I close my eyes and inhale deeply."Ok"

"You`re gonna win, Katniss just don`t forget to keep your chin up and-"

Cinna was cut off by the glass cylinder lowering around me but I knew what he was going to say,_ smile._ I lift my chin up and force a smile just for Cinna and the cylinder I am standing on begins to rise. While it does I am in complete darkness for a while. This was it. The Hunger Games were about to start and I promised Prim I would win and so that`s how it will be. Finally, I am in the open air and I take in the view.

"Ladies and gentle man let the _74 _th annual Hunger Games start!"

I only have 60 seconds to plan what to do but those 60 seconds go by fast.

I look around the arena and mentally start planning on what to grab. I can hear the bows and arrows next to a tree calling my name and tempting me to leave where I'm standing. But I can`t unless I wanted my leg blowed off. Maybe I should get an ally too; I could use all the help I can get. And then there was _Gale_…he was also looking around and I could see in his eyes he was planning on which supplies to get. Should I team up with him, I mean he was amazing at traps and snares. We could plan a trap on hanging a tribute from a tree which was a gruesome idea but that`s what The Hunger Games was all about. But Rue…she had skills and I wouldn`t mind working with the youngest tribute here.

I quickly remember about what Haymicth said; about finding water and my eyes find an empty water bottle where I can fill it up in the lake to my right. I'm not sure if I can grab many supplies but I can try.

20 seconds are left and I think I have some things planned out. I am a fast runner and I think that I might just get the chance to grab many supplies before the Cornucopia bloodbath begins, or hopefully Gale can get some supplies that I couldn`t get.

5 seconds are left and then the gong will go off. I position myself to run and my hands begin to sweat.

_5_

_4_

_3_

_2_

_1_

* * *

><p><strong>I hope you guys enjoyed and I can`t wait to start working on the next chapter (: By the way…how many of you are EXCITED for the movie? I know I am :D Any who don`t forget to review and we`ll see what`ll happen in the next chapter… (;<strong>


	11. The Hunger Games

**Finally! The Hunger Games have officially started and I can`t wait for you guys to read how it goes. Once again: Suzanne Collins owns EVERYTHING**,** I just own the idea of this story (:**

* * *

><p>The gong goes off and my mind yells at me to grab the bows and arrows. I quickly run to the bows and arrows pick them up and sprint over to grab a red book bag. I look to my right and the lake reminds me of the water! The water bottle! Haymitch`s voice in my head tells me to head to the lake and get water but the voice is replaced with pain. The District 1 girl pulls my braided hair and I collapse to the ground.<p>

"Where do you think you`re going?"Her green eyes sparkle in the sun and her lips curl up into an evil smile.

I look up at her and try not to show the pain of my head hitting the ground."What do you want, Glimmer?"Glimmer was her name and how I hated that stupid name.

"To win The Hunger Games of course…but first I need to get rid of you…" Glimmer takes out a knife and forces me to stand up.

"I don`t think so."I twist her wrist and she yells in pain. I`ve seen her "training" and she hardly does anything there except show off her blonde hair and look pretty. I think once she tried to flirt with Gale.

"Stop!"I pin her to a tree and grab the knife away from her. Somehow the thought of her flirting with Gale infuriates me.

"What?"I place the knife on her neck and look at her.

"Don`t ki-"Blood splats my face as I cut her neck with the knife. It's a gruesome scene but now the supplies she`s collected are all mines.

"Never flirt with Gale."I whisper and wipe some blood off my face.

Her, now dead body falls to the ground and I look inside her green book bag she collected. There`s a tent, winter clothes, ham, another knife, _2 _blankets, ropes…and a gallon of water! Atleast I didn't have to find water the hard way. I look at the bloody body of Glimmer and no spark of guilt crosses my features, she deserved to die. I take everything I have and sprint to the woods where no one can find me.

The sun is going down and even I don`t know what to do now. I place my supplies down and lean against a tree. The sound of the national anthem playing startles me. Then the cannons start to fire and I see the faces of _10_ tributes in the sky, including the girl from District 1 who I killed. And thank goodness Gale`s face wasn`t in the sky because if it was then I was the one who was going to have his bloody body in my arms and silently telling myself that there was still hope for him when there actually wasn`t.

I sigh and look through my red book bag. There`s a sleeping bag, night vision glasses, bread, cheese, grapes, carrots and a flash light. I guess that`s enough to keep me alive for a week or so. I then look at my bows and arrows with a grin and hug them. Good thing they had these because without them I was nothing.

I look up at the tree I am leaning against and decide to set up my sleeping bag up there.

"But how will I get my supplies all the way up there?"I whisper to myself and sigh.

The ropes! The ropes from the green bag. I take 1 long rope out and gather up all of my supplies. It takes some time but I manage to tie the rope to a tree branch and climb up the rope until I am sitting on a branch.

"Finally"I whisper.

I neatly set up my sleeping bag and place my supplies where no one can steal them while I`m sleeping and some tears roll down my cheeks. I missed District 12, especially when me and Gale would go hunting together…but most importantly I missed Prim and my mother. They must be worried sick about me right now. I hoped my mother was doing a good job at taking care of Prim because I was no longer there to do the job for her.

I wipe my tears away and as I do I notice there's blood in the back of my hand. Not my blood. It was Glimmer`s blood. I decide to leave the blood on my face to look intimidating and get in position to fall asleep in my sleeping bag…but I can't. Too many things are going through my mind right now. I sit up and inhale the beautiful air of the woods, how I missed hunting in the woods a lot. I couldn`t wait to hunt once again with Gale!_ Gale_…he wasn`t here with me right now. I wasn`t very used to him not being on my side, I missed him already.

_I start to fall asleep and I dream about the time when Glimmer flirted with Gale._

"Good job Katniss, let me just take a little break."I nod at Gale and continue aiming at the target with the bows and arrows.

Gale heads to sit down and opens a water bottle. That's when I see Glimmer walking over to Gale in the corner of my eye and suspect something.

"Hey."Glimmer sits next to him and gives him a sweet smile.

Gale nods at her and continues drinking his water.

"You know...you're really good with traps and snares."Glimmer says and tilts her head.

Gale stops drinking his water and sets it down."Thanks, but shouldn`t you be training?"

Glimmer arches an eyebrow at him and her smile drops."Shouldn`t you?"

"Yeah but I`m just taking a break, that`s all."Gale says.

"Taking a break?"She laughs."You mean from her?"Glimmer points to me and I feel the urge to go over to her and punch her in the jaw. But instead I try to control my anger and go over to her with an arrow in my hand."Gale I think you`re time is up, let's get back to training."I glance at Glimmer and roll my eyes.

Gale stands up but Glimmer pulls him back down to his seat."Whoa, you're not the boss of him!"

Other tributes who are training stop to look at us and there is silence in the room for a while. I can`t decide on what to do; either knock Glimmer out or get back to my training. My heart tells me to punch Glimmer in the jaw but my brain tells me to get back to my training.

"You`re right, I'm not the boss of him but don`t you understand that you can`t talk to a tribute that isn`t the same District as you while training?"I say through gritted teeth.

"I can talk to anyone I want…now leave us alone."Glimmer says.

_Us_? Glimmer was about to get it. This is what they meant by "conflict"with another tribute.

The other tributes are desperately watching us, wanting to find out what`ll happen next. I break the arrow in my hand and drop it.

"Ohhh I`m so scared of fire girl."Glimmer tosses her blonde hair over her shoulders and rolls her jade colored eyes.

"You should be."I take one step towards her and Glimmer stands up.

Gale immediately stands up and gets in between us."Catnip, Glimmer, Stop."

Glimmer does a weird face and looks at Gale."Who`s Catnip?"

"Me, that's Gale`s nickname for me."I say.

"You?"For some reason this angers Glimmer and she slaps me.

Gale steps out and looks at me with a worried expression on his face."Cat-Katniss are you ok?"

The other tributes watching the show gasp and cover their mouths. Well this was it, It was my turn to punch Glimmer in the jaw and that`s exactly what I did. Glimmer loses her balance and falls to the ground while holding her jaw. She screams in pain and the tributes watch her without doing anything to help her. They didn`t want to interfere, that would just make matters worse, supposedly.

_3 _people I don`t know rush in and grab me by my arms tightly. They forcefully take me out of the training center and Gale follows me."Let her go!"He yells."_Let her go, let her go, let her go…"_

My eyes quickly open and the sun has risen up, but I quickly notice something. The tree I am on is wobbly and I can smell fire. Neither of those things were good, that`s when I notice _5_ tributes are cutting down the tree I`m on, they have a stick lit up with fire and I recognize the tributes.

"Oh no"I whisper.

"Remember the plan"The District 9 boy says."We get the girl down, we kill her, and then we kill her _boyfriend_."

* * *

><p><strong>First of all thank you for your awesome reviews and IF you guys have any idea on what I should write on my next chapter then review and tell me, chances are your idea might end up as my next chapter, no kidding (: Anyways thank you for reading and we`ll see what happens next (:<strong>


	12. The Hunger Games:Finding Danger

**Disclaimer:**** Suzanne Collins owns everything. Please enjoy this chapter, I had a lot of fun writing it (:**

* * *

><p>Panic rushes through my veins and my mind is confused of what to do. I look down at the tributes and an idea occurs to me. My lips curl up into a smile; this would be fun.<p>

"How`s the weather down there?"I say.

The tributes look up at me with a surprised expression on their faces.

"Why don`t you come down here and see for yourself?"Asks the District 9 boy with a grin.

Something told me that he was the leader of the group and I shrugged at him."I asked first."

"Enough get down here so that we can kill you and get over with it already."He responds.

I glance at my bows and arrows that are sitting next to me and I turn my attention back to the District 9 boy."Now why would I do that?"I say and smirk.

"Because if you don`t I`ll do it myself."He replies.

I laugh a little. The audience must be enjoying this just like I am right now."Well then, come and get me."I gather up all of my supplies and start swinging from tree branches to tree branches.

"Get her!"Yells the District 9 boy.

The group of tributes begins to run and I swing faster."Come and catch me boys!"I can`t help but stick my tongue out at them and laugh a little. It was childish but I haven`t had this much fun ever since I was younger. All of the responsibility I have in my hands now changed my life. Taking care of Prim, helping out my mother, catching the food myself to stay alive; it was all hard work, especially now that my father wasn`t around. The breeze of the air rushes through my hair and I close my eyes. I felt as if I was still home right now, like I never left District 12.

Swinging like this is tiring though (believe it or not) and some of the branches are scraping my hands. Sweat drenches my forehead and I try to wipe it off with one hand, as I do the tree branch that I am swinging on breaks,oh no,this wasn`t good.

I try to grab on to something so that I won`t fall but there is nothing that I can hold on to. I try not to scream and land on a bush of berries. Run, run! My mind yells at me. I try to get up but my back hurts because of the fall, no matter how much I try I can`t seem to get up myself, I needed help from someone in order to get up.

"Maybe this wasn`t a good idea after all…"I say and groan at the pain of my back.

Out of nowhere, Rue jumps off a tree and I am startled by her presence."Rue?"I question.

"Shhhh."She puts a finger on her lips and carefully helps me up. I stay silent and she leads me behind the tree she jumped off.

"You idiots! We lost her!"Says a voice that can only be the District 9 boy.

"Well it`s not our fault."Responds the District 3 boy.

"Yes it is! Don`t you understand? That girl has a high chance of winning The Hunger Games than any of us! We can`t let her live you stupid idiots!"The District 9 boy responds.

There`s a long silence and then the District 9 boy sighs."You know what, let's just find her boyfriend, kill him and then we`ll get back to her."

"Alright, but uh, where will we find him?"Asks the District 3 boy.

The District 9 boy smacks the back of the District 3 boy`s head and shakes his head."That`s why we need the girl!"

"Enough with this Seth maybe you should be the one to die."Says the District 1 boy and places the sharp point of his knife on Seth`s neck.

Oh, right! Seth was the District 9 boy's name. Another weird name just like Glimmer.

"Oh and why is that Marvel? Do you have a crush on her too?"Asks Seth and pushes the knife away from his neck.

After a long silence Seth asks again,"Well do you?"

"No, she killed Glimmer."Marvel says in a low voice.

"My point exact. Now…let`s go find her boyfriend."Says Seth and pushes Marvel to the ground with his palms.

"Ugh, I hate that boy, he thinks he`s some hot stuff."Says the District 3 boy as the group walks away, leaving Marvel behind.

"Fine, have it your away…"Marvel says through clenched teeth as he stands up.

"Should we-"

I interrupt Rue and shake my head,"No."Rue was about to ask if we should help him but of course we shouldn't. For one thing I killed Glimmer and he may want revenge because of that, but I wasn`t so sure, the best thing to do was stay silent for now until he left.

Marvel begins to walk away until I step on a tree branch._ Good job Katniss, now he`s gonna kill you!_

He turns his head to look."Who`s there? Show yourself."

A squirrel jumps out a bush and Marvel smiles at the creature."Oh, it`s just you. "He says and shakes his head as he starts to walk away.

"Finally,"I whisper as I give Rue a shaky smile.

Rue sighs in relief,"Don`t worry about Gale,Katniss, he`s very strong and I`m pretty sure he can kill all of them."Rue responds.

It`s as if Rue read my mind and she was right, Gale was strong, I had nothing to worry about; he would take care of them. I nod at her and Rue heads over to the bush of berries that I landed on and tastes one of the berries.

What if they were poisonous? Rue can`t just go around eating berries like that.

She swallows the berry and licks her lips."Mmmm, wild berries."She collects some of the berries and puts it inside her yellow book bag.

"But what if they`re poisonous?"I ask her.

"Oh, they`re not poisonous Katniss.I can tell if they are."She stuffs some more berries inside her book bag and zips it closed.

I nod at her and sit down in front of the bush of berries, cross legged."Wanna eat some breakfast?"

"Sure, what'd you got?"She asks.

This was just like when me and Gale would go hunting. He`d ask what`d I catch and we would cook up the food we caught/hunted and eat together in the woods. I take out my bread, grapes, carrots and gallon of water. Rue nods at the food and takes out the wild berries that she just collected oranges, a melon and 5 apples.

"Looks good."I say.

Rue also sits down cross legged and we begin to eat the food in front of us.

"How`s The Hunger Games been for you so far?"I ask Rue as I bite into an apple.

"Challenging, I'm not really used to being in the woods."Rue bites a carrot and looks up at the sky.

"That`s funny because I`m really used to the woods and hunting."I place my apple down and wipe my mouth.

"Luck you; I'm more used to planting crops, fruits, vegetables and all of that good stuff."Rue says with a smile.

I study the apple I was eating and look at her."So wait, you planted this apple?"

Rue nods,"Yeah, same with the oranges and melon."

"That`s pretty cool...but how did you manage to grow them so fast? I mean we`ve been in the Hunger Games for one day only."I ask.

"I was taught how to grow different things at a young age and my father taught me a special trick on how to grow them quicker."Rue responds and starts to put everything away.

I help her out and can`t help but ask,"Have you seen Gale?"

"Gale? I`m not sure I did, sorry. But I`m pretty sure he`s okay, don`t worry."Rue picks her supplies up and asks if I need help with carrying any of my supplies.

I shake my head and gather up all of my supplies too."I hope."

We start walking through the woods and I teach Rue how to hunt. She's a fast learner because she immediately got the hang of it. I've seen her in the training center and unlike Glimmer…she has major skills. Glimmer. I suddenly remember Glimmer`s blood is still on my face and decide on whether to still leave it there or wash it. I`ll leave it on my face I decide.

The sun is going down and me and Rue are done hunting for today. The more later it is, the more dangerous it gets in the woods.

"Good job Rue."I say with a smile.

"Thanks."Rue slowly responds.

Without looking I step on a rope located on the ground and the rope hangs me upside down, tightening my ankle. Someone must`ve set up a trap and I fell for it! Why didn`t I look down first? I look down at Rue and the grip of the rope is very tight on my ankle. Blood rushes to my face and I turn bright red."Rue help!"I whisper.

But before Rue can make a sudden movement a hand covers her mouth and someone else ties her hands. She tries to yell over the persons hands but she can`t.

"Hey! Don`t touch her!"I yell.

I can`t see none of their faces; its night time already and how I regretted hunting before it got dark. I knew something like this would happen. How stupid of me.

They duct tape Rue`s mouth and they grab her by the arms.

"Katniss Everdeen…how`s everything?"

I recognized that voice and that face...it was the District 2 boy, Cato, and he was going to kill me…

* * *

><p><strong>So I know that Gale isn`t in this chapter just like how many of you have been asking but he will be in the next chapter, don't worry. Also I know this chapter wasn`t as exciting as the other one but I`ll make the next chapter more exciting. Other than that don`t forget to review and thank you for reading (:<strong>


	13. The Hunger Games:Getting Rescued

**So a lot of you have been insisting to have Gale and I was just waiting for the perfect time to bring him and he does come out in this chapter! Yay! Don`t forget, Suzanne Collins owns everything (;**

* * *

><p>''Cato?''I say as I get a better view of him.<p>

What could Cato possibly want? Except for the fact that he wanted to kill me…but what else did he want?

''I can`t believe you were stupid enough to step on my trap.''Cato steps closer to me and all of the blood in my body has rushed to my head.

''It was dark. How could I possibly see what was on the ground?''I ask.

Cato shrugs and replies,''guess you were dumber than I thought you were.''

''So you`re saying you think I`m smart?''I ask dumbfounded.

''I _thought_ you were, but apparently you`re not.''Cato replies.

''Well then, what are you planning on doing with me?''I ask with anger in my voice.

''Well what else, Katniss? On killing you and your little friend of course.''Cato points to Rue who`s eyes are filled with fear.

''No,don`t kill her. If there`s someone you wanna kill, it`s me.''I knew that voice... It was _Gale!_ I was so happy to hear his voice once again and to know that he wasn`t dead.

''Gale?''I ask to make sure it was really him.

''Catnip! Are you ok? Where are you, I can`t really see you because it`s dark.''Answers Gale.

''Yes, I'm right here, follow my voice Gale.''I say, forgetting all about Cato.

''How cute, your boyfriend came to the rescue Katniss, too bad you can`t see him because now is his last time being alive.''Says Cato.

I could feel Gale`s hand touching my face once he`d found me but once he does Cato throws a knife at Gale in his shoulder, causing him to fall.

''GALE!''I yell and try to untie the rope tightening my ankle.

I can`t see very well in the dark but…my glasses! My night vision glasses! I grab my red book bag that fell to the ground and quickly open it, looking for the night vision glasses. Once I feel the glasses I take them out and let my book bag fall to the ground again.

''Gale, catch! ''I yell at him and toss him the night vision glasses. Fortunately, Gale catches the night vision glasses and puts them on.

I felt so useless with the rope tightening my ankle and falling for this obvious rope trap. I needed to help Gale or else he would die.

''You ok?''Asks a familiar voice to Rue. I blink a little to try to adjust my eyes to the dark and notice It's Thresh, and apparently he knocked out the 2 tributes that were holding Rue.

Were Thresh and Gale allies? They probably were.

Rue nods at him with duct tape still in her mouth and her hands still tied up.

''I'm surprised you and ''Catnip'' didn't team up for The Hunger Games,''Cato tells Gale as he sends him another knife.

Gale ducks the knife and the knife inserts a tree behind him,''I was looking for her,''Gale responds and stands up.

He was? I didn`t know Gale was looking for me; I should`ve looked for him too.

Cato cuts the rope I am hanging on and I fall to the ground, head first. Why did he cut the rope? Wasn`t he the one who set it up for _me?_

''Stand up!''Cato yells and kicks me.

I stand up and punch Cato in the jaw with my fists once I scramble to my feet,''do not kick me.''Although I felt dizzy because I was hung upside down that didn`t stop me from giving Cato what he deserved.

Cato grabs my wrist and punches my nose with his knuckles.''And don`t punch me,''he whispers in my ear as he lets my wrist go and I fall to the ground.

''Do not touch her!''Screams Gale as he runs toward Cato and chokes him.

I wipe some blood from my nose and I could`ve sworn my nose cracked when Cato punched me; I think my nose was also broken because of the pain I felt. I then watch as Thresh unties Rue and slowly peels off the duct tape from her mouth. I`m so glad to see Rue is safe because I actually _cared _about her even though this was The Hunger Games where we were supposed to kill each other…but Rue was _different._

The national anthem playing startles all of us and the cannons begin to fire._1, 2, 3, 4 _tributes are dead already, including Cato._10 _tributes left to go. I watch as Cato`s now dead body falls to the ground and Gale rushes to me and kneels down.''Catnip, I am so sorry for not being there when you needed me but from now on I will.''Whispers Gale.

I notice he still has the knife stuck on his shoulders and run my fingers along the knife.''I know you will,''was my only response.

I take out the knife from his shoulders and Gale flinches a little. Blood runs down his clothes and I wipe some off with my bare hands. I felt too weak for some reason and for the first time ever I felt something for Gale.

''FIRE!''Rue yells.

I blink and turn my head toward where the fire is located. Little by little the fire keeps on growing and the smell of the fire is deadly. I cough a little and stand up, still holding the knife._Fire…_I laugh a little,remembering when Cinna lit me up on fire in the opening ceremonies with Gale and Haymitch always told me I was Katniss,the girl who was on fire. What a laugh.

''But where did it come from?''I ask even though everyone's attention is at the fire.

''We need to go.''Gale says as he grabs onto my hand to leave.

''No! We can`t leave Thresh and Rue here.''I yell over the fire that is making its way to us.

Gale cups my face and I focus on his gray eyes.''Katniss,we need to go. Now.''

I shake my head and let some tears fall,''no!''I watch as the fire eats both Thresh and Rue. They were too late to get away from the fire and here I am watching them die. That should be me right there,I was the one who deserved to die.

''Rue!''I scream as Rue burns in the fire.''Noooooooo!''I yell even though my throat hurts.

''Catnip, listen to me, we need to go!''Gale says. Why can`t Gale understand how much Rue meant to me?

I jerk away from Gale`s grip in my hands and run toward the fire while coughing. The cannons begin to fire once again and Thresh and Rue`s face appear in the sky. _8 _tributes left…

''KATNISS!''Gale screams and follows me.

''Rue, Rue, I'm so sorry.''I fall to my knees and begin to cry. Although I can`t see her burnt body I can still feel her somehow. Amazing isn`t it?

Gale hurries over to me and carries me. Once he does I immediately try to jump off his arms but fail and give up. His arms are warm and the temperature has dropped already since it`s nighttime. The smoke is too hard to resist, I cough little and wrap my arms around his neck as I sob into his chest.

''This is my entire fault…''I say in a shaky voice.

Gale begins to run away from the fire while still carrying me and shakes his head, ''no, it`s not Catnip.''

''Yes! It is! Don`t you understand Gale? ''I say and grab his shirt.

''Yes Catnip, I do understand. Me and Thresh were allies but he`s gone now and there`s nothing to do about it.''He responds.

''How could you say that?''I say and look up at him. Glimmer`s blood was running down my face but I didn`t care the least to wipe it off..

''Catnip both our fathers died the same way…we need to forget about it. Death is death,''Gale responds and looks down at me.

I sigh and wipe some tears away from my face,''I suppose you`re right.''I`ve had so many loved ones die and it`s complicated but sometimes you just need to move on like a friend once told me…

Once Gale makes sure we are far away from the fire he looks around the woods and places all of the supplies down. Good thing he grabbed on to all of the supplies because we wouldn`t survive without it.

''Ok, we`re safe now.''Gale says and gently places me down.

''Gale…''I say.

''Yes?''He asks.

''Thank you,''I press my lips on his and the warmth of his hot lips warms my whole body up. I've never kissed a boy before and once I kissed Gale I knew I was missing out on a lot. I wrap my arms around his neck and I can feel Gale trying to deepen the kiss a little. Kissing Gale felt so good, like waking up from a long sleep; having his body so close to mines in this cold weather just made everything feel so right and better. I never wanted this kiss to end.

Gale pulls away from the kiss and we both gasp a little for air, Gale looks at me,''you have beautiful eyes.''

''So do you,''I say and rest my hand on his warm cheek. I`ve never noticed how warm Gale was until now.

''Did I ever tell you, I love you?''Before I can respond to that Gale presses his lips once again on mines and we both knew I didn`t have to say,_ I love you too _in response.

Who knew there would be romance in The Hunger Games?

* * *

><p><strong>So hopefully this chapter didn`t disappoint any of you guys and if you want me to continue just click that Review button below. Other than that, Thank you for reading and we`ll see what will happen next… (;<strong>


	14. Romance In The Hunger Games

**Disclaimer: Suzanne Collins owns everything**

* * *

><p>While I was kissing Gale I didn`t want to break the kiss but Gale felt hot, a little too hot.<p>

''Gale,''the words came out more like a mumble since we were still kissing but since I stopped kissing Gale back he pulled away with a questioning look on his face and blushed a little.

''Sorry I-''Gale begins.

''No, it's not that,''I say and I feel something warm but sticky on my chest.''Gale, your cut!''I touch Gale`s warm blood on my chest and Gale immediately stands up.

''It's nothing Catnip,''Gale says.

''Yes it-''A first aid kit attached to a silver parachute falls from the sky and I stand up to catch it.

''We have sponsors?''Gale asks.

''Yes!''My lips curl up into a smile.''We do have sponsors Gale.''

Another silver parachute falls from the sky and this time Gale catches it.

''What is it?''I ask Gale and stand next to him.

''Beef stew,''Gale smiles.''And it's hot.''

The word _hot_ reminds me of Gales cut and our _kiss_ we had just a while ago. I will never forget how his warm lips felt on mine…maybe that was the reason why we had sponsors. I could just hear Haymitch`s voice in my head saying:_ Stay together at all times and remember, you two love each other!_

The sun was rising and Gales cut was still bleeding.''Gale we need to get your cut cleaned, we can`t just leave it open like that.''I point to his cut and look at him.

''Catnip I`m telling you I`m fine,''he protests.

''Gale we need to close your cut before you bleed out,''I watch as blood drips from his cut.

''Alright Catnip, if it makes you happy,''Gale kisses my cheek and I can`t help but blush a little.

''Okay, you lie down while I set up the tent,''but before Gale can protest I say,''and_ I_ will be the only one to set up the tent.''

Gale nods in defeat and I begin to set up the tent while Gale sighs and lies down on the ground.''Catnip, if you need any help just tell me,''Gale starts.

''Gale…''I look at him and put up the tent, which was easy to put up than other tents that `I've set up.

''Just saying,''Gale says.

A few minutes later I take a step back from the tent that is now set up and look over at Gale.''Okay, It`s done.''

''That was fast,''Gale stands up and flinches a little.

I quickly run over to him and help him walk. ''See, this is why I didn`t let you set up the tent,''I say and help him inside the tent.

''I know it's just that…''Gale bites his lips and lies down while putting his hand on his cut.

''Gale! Don`t touch your cut, you can contaminate it.''I quickly open the first aid kit and take out the supplies to bandage Gales cut.

''Sorry,''Gale replies.

''It`s ok Gale,''I open an alcohol prep pad and smoothly rub it on Gales cut.''This might sting a little.''

Gale closes his eyes and holds on to my other empty hand.

''Does it hurt when I do this?''I gently touch Gales cut and he nods as I do.

''Okay,''I slowly bandage Gales cut and make sure not to bandage it too tight.''Is it too tight?''

''No, it`s perfect.''Gale opens his eyes but still holds onto my other hand,''thanks Catnip.''

''You`re welcome,''I force a smile and look away from him.

''Is something wrong, Catnip?''Gale could tell the smile was fake and sat up.

''I just wonder if Prim and my mother are okay.''A tear escapes my eye and I don`t bother to wipe it off.

''Catnip, there`s nothing to worry about I`m sure they`re okay.''Gale wipes away my tear and looks at me.

''But you don`t know that Gale. What if-what if they`re starving right now?''I begin to bite my nails and my heart starts to beat at a fast rate.

''Catnip I swear to you that your family is okay.''Gale kisses my hand and places it on his chest. Once again; Gale's warmth hit me…he felt that good. I craved for his warmth.

''What if you`re wrong Gale? What if my mother couldn`t handle all the pressure of taking care of Prim? What if, she`s dead since I`m gone and so is my dad..I can`t-I can`t let anything happen to her Gale…''I carefully hug Gale and tears pour down my cheek.

''Catnip look at me,''I pull away from the hug and look at Gale while wiping my tears away.''Your family will survive and so will mine.''I could see determination in his eyes…Gale wasn`t always that serious and I knew that he really meant what he said.

''Promise me?''I ask to make sure.

''I swear,''Gale strokes my cheek and I relax a little.

''Okay,''I respond.

The national anthem playing almost makes me jump but I wonder who`s died today. I stick my head out the tent and look up the sky where the District 3 boy and the District 4 girl`s face appears. Only two cannons fire. _2_ deaths only? That was amazing. After the fire I thought for sure that I would see more faces in the sky but apparently only 2 tributes died today. That meant Clove, me, Gale, Marvel, the District 4 boy and the fox faced girl from District 5 were left._6_ tributes were left if my math was right. I stick my head back in the tent and look at Gale.

''Who died Catnip?''Gale quickly asks.

''The District 3 boy and the District 4 girl''I tell him.

Gale nods at me,''fair enough.''

I suddenly feel a cold breeze enter inside the tent and goose bumps begin to form on my arms somehow. How was it all of a sudden cold?

''Gale, did you feel that?''I ask him as I rub my arms and close the tent.

''Yeah...I think the game makers decided to change The Hunger Games up,''Gale`s eyes widen a little and he opens Glimmers green book bag.

''What do you mean?''I manage to say through the cold temperature that has suddenly dropped.

''Remember when we would watch The Hunger Games back in District 12 and when there were a few tributes left the game makers would make survival harder for them?''Gale questions me.

''Yes…''I look at him catching on to what he means.''They`re making, staying warm harder for us.''

Gale nods and passes me a coat and a blanket.''Hurry, put it before you get hypothermia and die.''

I put on the coat and cover myself with the blanket, trying to stay as warm as I can.

''Wow...it`s starting to get colder,''I say as my teeth shatter.

''I think the temperature has dropped to 0,''Gale replies slowly.

''It's okay, we`ll make it I know we will,''I whisper.

Gale wraps his arms around me and I could feel a little bit of his warmth spreading through my body and heating my blood up,''If we die then at least we`ll be together.''Gale whispers into my ear.

''Yes,''my eyes find the beef stew that we received and sigh.''I don`t think we`ll have sponsors if we don`t use what they sent us.''

Gale pulls away and looks at the beef stew,''you`re right…but it's probably cold already.''

''Maybe but we should be thankful we have sponsors Gale.''I place my hands on top of the beef stew and quickly move my hand away from it,''oww!''

''What?''Gale asks curiosity all over his face.

''It's hot,''I blow my fingers and study the redness of it.

''Let me see the burn,''Gale insists.

I show him my burned hands and flinch a little at the pain.

''Does it hurt that much?''Gale asks as he studies the burns.

''Not really. I've gotten burnt before Gale, I'll be fine.''I tell him.

''Are you sure?''Gale asks to make sure.

''Yes,''I answer.

''Alright then, I guess we should probably eat right?''Gale unlids the beef stew`s container and the delicious smell of it enters my nose.

''Mmmm,''I lick my lips and close my eyes at the memory of eating beef stew before The Hunger Games had begun.

Gale hands me a spoon and I open my eyes to take it from him,''thanks.''

We both drink from the beef stew and don`t bother taking turns to drink it; we were too hungry to do so. The beef stew tasted wonderful and I was happy to enjoy some complimentary food from our sponsors.

''That was delicious,''Gale licks his lips and sucks his fingers as a way of showing satisfaction from the beef stew.

''Yeah,''was my only response. The temperature had gotten even colder than before.

''Catnip, remember that time we caught that raccoon?''Gale asks to keep me focused on something else other than the decrease in temperature.

''Yes,''I respond after a long while,''that was a genius trap you thought of Gale.''

''Well you helped me catch it,''Gale responds.

''Yeah, we`re hunting partners,''I tell Gale.

''Aren`t we more than that?''Gale asks in a very low voice that I have to put effort in to listen.

''What?''I ask to make sure that`s what I actually heard.

''Never mind,''Gale hangs his head and focuses on the empty beef stew`s container.

''No, Gale, tell me.''I meet his gray eyes and open my ears to listen.

''When we kissed…did you like it?''Gale asks.

I almost laughed at the question. If I liked the kiss? I enjoyed it more than anything in the world and kept on wishing we could do it once again.

''Yes…a lot,''I tell him with all my honesty.

''Really? Or were you just pretending to like it?''Gale arches an eye brow and his eyes are full of seriousness.

''Yes. Don't you think that if I didn`t like it that I wouldn`t have kissed you again?''This conversation was getting awkward for me that I couldn`t help but blush.

''You`re telling the truth,''Gale says.

''Huh?''I ask dumbfounded.

''Your cheeks turned bright red like a rose,''Gale rests his hand on my cheek and it`s then when I notice I was really cold because his touch felt so hot on my skin. I close my eyes when he does and relax for a while forgetting all about being in The Hunger Games and imagine myself back home with Prim and my mother, how I missed them.

''You feel too cold,''Gale says as he wraps his arms around me once again.

I open my eyes and my cheeks are pressed on Gale`s warm chest,''Gale, if you make it alive then I want you to have this,''I hand Gale my golden mocking jay pin and Gale studies the pin in his hands.

''A mocking jay pin?''Gale asks.

''Yes, it was my father's gift to my mom.''I explain to him how Cinna said I was allowed to wear it in The Hunger Games because of an exception and Gale nods as I do.

''But why are you giving it to me?''Gale asks after I'm done explaining.

''Because I love you,''were the only four words that came out of my mouth.

''Me too,''Gale pulls me closer to him and his warmth slowly begins to spread again.

So much emotion, feeling and much more was going between us right now. I couldn't help but notice how warm his lips felt on mines when we first kissed…I just had to feel them once again, they were just too tempting.

''Gale, promise me we`ll both try to win The Hunger Games,''I whisper my lips just inches away from his.

''I promise,''Gale probably read my mind because he softly brushed his lips against mines and tightened his arms around me. I could feel his lips hungry on mines but he slowly pulled away from the kiss.

''What-''Gale sticks his head out the tent and I can see his eye widen when he does.

''The Game makers…there's a blizzard heading our way…''

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and don`t forget to review! (:<strong>


	15. The Hunger Games:Revealing Secrets

**First of all I just wanna say, sorry for the long update! I wasn`t sure of what to write and so I was stuck. But fortunately my friend helped me out and then it hit me on what to write! Secondly, Suzanne Collins owns everything as you all know. Now, please enjoy this interesting chapter!**

* * *

><p>''What is wrong with the gamemakers? Do they really wanna freeze us to death!''I exclaim.<p>

''And to think this was The _Hunger_ Games you would've thought they were supposed to starve us to death,''Gale responds as he closes the tent.

''What are you doing?''I ask as Gale closes the tent.

''Closing the tent…''He responds slowly.

''Why?''I ask.

''Because there's a blizzard heading our way and we need to keep warm,''Gale answers.

''Gale, we can`t just stay here forever. We need to do something.''I tell him as I grab my bow and arrows.

''How? We can`t stop the weather and we can`t control it either,''Gale explains.

''I`m going hunting for food,''I say as I open the tent and let the cool breeze in.

''No Catnip, you can`t it`s too dangerous,''Gale reaches for my hand to pull me back but I get out the tent before he does,''stay here until I come back with food,''I tell him.

''Let me come with you,''he pleads.

''You `re hurt, remember?''I point to his bandaged cut and look at him.

''I`m fine now,''Gale starts.

''And so will I be,''I blow him a kiss and close the tent,''sorry''I whisper and run to the woods.

I knew that I could`ve stayed in the tent until the blizzard passed but it didn`t seem like the right thing to do. This was The Hunger Games and I needed people to bet money on someone who they were sure of winning. I had to show them that the real winners were me and Gale, not just me only.

The snow of the weather hits my face as I run in the woods but I couldn`t let that stop me from finding and hunting food. Maybe it could have been better with Gale coming along with me. It would bring back the memories of hunting with him in District 12 and Gale was an expert at traps and snares. But it was too late for him to come along; it was snowing harder and getting even colder in the woods.

When the national anthem begins to play I stop running to catch my breath and look up the sky curious to see who's died. As I do a flying duck catches my eye and I quickly shoot my arrow at the creature.

''Wow,''Marvel says as the duck falls at my feet.

''Huh?''His presence startles me and I quickly retrieve the duck almost falling down as I do.

''So you are good with bows and arrows,''Marvel says ignoring the fact that he just appeared out of nowhere.

''Thank you...''I stammer out.

One cannon fires and I don`t bother to look up the sky in case Marvel thinks of something.

''_5_ of us left now,''Marvel looks up the sky and sighs as he does.

''Yes. It's very sad…''I respond slowly being cautious.

''Oh well,''Marvel replies as if we`re having a normal conversation.

A question immediately crosses my mind and I don`t bother to think twice before asking it,''did you kill him?''

''Who?''Marvel questions, the question taking him by surprise.

''Seth,''I respond.

''Yes. Yes I did. And you killed Glimmer,''Marvel admits.

''How did you even find out?''Was my only question to him.

''I saw you,''Marvel reveals.

I squeeze the duck in my hands and stay silent.

''Why did you kill her?''Marvel asks as if to get the question over with.

''Why did you kill Seth?''I ask.

''You know why,''Marvel responds.

''No, I don`t actually,''I take a step back and think of making a run for it.

''I already knew that it was you and Rue behind that tree Katniss.I know you overheard the conversation, but I didn`t say anything when I was supposed to,''Marvel takes a step closer to me and I look at him.

He was talking about when me and Rue were hiding behind that tree in the woods. Marvel could have killed us. But he didn`t,the question was,_ why_?

''Why didn`t you? ''I ask him and take a step back,bumping into a tree as I do.

''You still haven`t answered my question yet. Why did you kill Glimmer?''He asks me once again.

The thing was I didn`t know why myself. Was it because of hate, anger…maybe even jealousy?

''I-I`m not sure…''I look down at the snow and avoid looking at his eyes.

Marvel hesitates for a moment and his lips curl up into a smile,''can I tell you a secret?''

Why was he smiling? We were just talking about Glimmer`s death. How can a death bring happiness?

''Huh?''I look up at him, still holding the duck in my hands.

''I never liked Glimmer; even if she was from District 1 too,''Marvel confesses.

''Oh, really?''I ask feeling relieved for some reason.

''Yes. She always wants everything her way; Glimmer is the most meanest person you would ever meet,''Marvel tells me.

''I thought you were angry at me for killing her,''I admit to him.

''Not at all. She deserved it,''Marvel says.

''Yes... ''I look up the sky and rub my arms.

''Oh, are you cold?''Marvel asks with a worried expression on his face.

''Sort of,''I answer.

''I set up a fire over there to keep warm. You can come along to warm yourself too,''Marvel says as he turns around and walks towards the fire he set up.

I follow him and stop dead on my tracks._Gale_.I forgot all about him. If I don`t return he`ll worry about me and come looking for me. I didn`t want him to do so because of his injury; it would cause him a lot of pain.

''What`s wrong?''Marvel asks as he turns around to face me.

''Nothing,''I shake my head at him and continue to follow.I`ll worry about Gale later.

''Well here we are,''Marvel points to the fire and sits down on a log.

I sit down next to him and warm myself with the fire,''who taught you how to make a fire?''

''Myself. I just learned from watching others to do so,''Marvel explains.

''So you learned from others,''I say with a smile and set the duck on the ground.

''Alright if you wanna put it that way,''Marvel says returning the smile.

''I learned at a very young age,''I tell him,''I`m not quite sure who taught me but I think it was my father.''

''Wow. What does your father do for a living?''Marvel asks.

''He died, but he used to be a miner,''I say with a frown.

''Oh, Im sorry…''Marvel blurts out.

''It`s okay. He died in a mine explosion,''I rub my hands together and sigh.

''I`m so sorry,''Marvel says as he rubs my back.

''Everyone is,''I say with a knot in my throat.

''I know how you feel,''Marvel pulls me into a hug and I accept it.

''Get away from my girlfriend,''I was surprised those words were actually coming from _Gale`s_ lips…

* * *

><p><strong>Again, sorry for the long update and short chapter...IF you have any ideas for the next chapter just review and let me know,other than that thank you for reading (:<strong>


	16. The Hunger Games:The Fight For The Girl

**Suzanne Collins owns everything and please enjoy this chapter (:**

* * *

><p>I quickly pull away from the hug as the words leave Gale`s lips and stand up,''Gale, I told you to stay in the tent until I returned.''<p>

''You were taking too long Catnip. I was starting to worry,''Gale says as his eyes dart to Marvel.

I pick up the duck that I set down on the ground and look at Gale,''I caught a duck.''

''Katniss you never told me that Gale was your boyfriend,''Marvel says with disappointment in his voice.

''Why are you still here? Leave,''Gale tells Marvel.

''Gale! Don`t talk to Marvel that way,''I say my voice rising when I do.

''Why are you defending him? He`s our enemy,''Gale says not taking his eyes off Marvel.

''Who are you? Her father? Katniss can defend whoever she wants,''Marvel says as he stands up.

I suddenly remember the time when Seth asked Marvel if he liked me and Marvel said he didn`t because I killed Glimmer. But Marvel revealed to me that he hated her which meant…Marvel lied. He did like me.

''This is the last time I`m asking you to kindly leave,''Gale says in a soft voice.

''What if I don`t?''Marvel says as he smirks.

''Marvel stops it!''I yell at him and grip the duck`s neck in my hands.

And as if I were invisible Gale says,''should I tell you? Or should I show you?''

This wasn`t good. Marvel and Gale were going to get into a fight just because of me. But this is what the audience wanted to see…should I go with it or should I stop it?

''I think you should show me fire boy,''Marvel replies.

''Gale don`t…''I say as an idea pops into my head. _Maybe I should go with it and try to stop it._

''Catnip,''Gale walks over to me and kisses my cheek,''just stay here.''

I nod at him and watch as he walks over to Marvel,then again…maybe I should try to stop the fight._ Just wait for the perfect time Katniss_ my mind tells me.

''Well, Im waiting,''Marvel stifles a yawn and crosses his arms.

Gale throws the first punch and I gasp as he does. Blood pours out of Marvel`s nose and it`s then when I find out Gale can throw a very hard punch! Who knew from all the hunting and trapping that Gale could throw a good punch?

''Wow,''Marvel wipes his nose and looks up at Gale,''for a fire boy you sure punch like a girl.''Marvel returns the punch by punching Gale`s jaw. My eyes widen at the sight and I cover my mouth hoping for Gale to be alright.

''I punch like a girl?''Gale rubs his jaw and shakes his head,''then explain your bleeding nose.''

''Anyone can get hit in the nose and bleed,''Marvel answers as his fist make contact with Gale`s eyes.

I scream as Gale almost falls back at the punch. Suddenly I remember about Gale`s bandaged cut. He was still hurt and weak.

''How about this. Whoever lives gets Katniss,''Marvel says as he tries to send Gale a punch.

''Oh please, Catnip would never want you,''Gale says as he ducks the punch from Marvel.

''Any girl would want to date a guy with blonde hair and green eyes,''Marvel says as he tries to kick Gale`s stomach.

''Catnip isn`t just any girl,''Gale grabs his foot and twists it,''she`s different.''

''I know she is,''Marvel jerks his foot away from Gale`s grasp and looks at him,''Katniss doesn`t deserve a guy like you.''

''Me and Catnip have a lot of things in common,''Gale looks back at me and then turns back to Marvel,''you hardly know anything about her.''

''Oh really? Then how do I know that her father died in a mine explosion?''Marvel says in response.

''That`s probably the only thing you know about her but I know more than that,''Gale says as he catches his breath and places a hand on his bandaged cut.

''I know everything I need to know about her,''Marvel answers and notices his bandaged cut.

I am confused on what to do now. My mind is yelling at me to go over to them and tell them that none of them know me like I know myself but I stay quiet like Effie taught me and keep on listening to what each of them have to say.

''Stop saying that you know her!''Gale`s knuckles make contact with his nose once again and even more blood than before comes out from Marvel.

''Whoa, fire boy`s getting feisty. I see…''Marvel wipes his nose and puts Gale in a head lock.

I could see Marvel cutting off Gale`s breathing in the head lock and decided on whether to finally take action or not,''Marvel STOP!''My voice echoes in the woods and a mocking jay flies away at the tone of my voice.

Gale elbows his stomach and Marvel looks back at me with a smile,''don`t worry Katniss, apparently your ''boyfriend''can`t handle a manly fight.''

Gale takes the chance when Marvel`s not paying attention and strongly punches his stomach causing him to let go and fall down on his back.

''Oww,''Marvel gets out.

Gale kneels down next to Marvel and studies him,''what`s wrong? Can`t handle a manly fight?''

Marvel`s lips curl up into a smile and he extends his hand,''good job fire boy.''I sigh in relief and relax a little.

Gale shakes his hand and in a blink of an eye Marvel plunges a knife in Gale`s chest.

''GALE!''I yell as he collapses to the ground and run over to him.

''Katniss…''Marvel says in a shaky voice.

I turn my head and Marvel smiles at me,''I loved you and now that you know that I can die happily...''Marvel closes his eyes and the snow begins to cover is body.

''Marvel no!''One cannon fires to the snowy sky and his face appears,''I`m so sorry.''

Marvel died and it was my entire fault. If I just returned to the tent when I was supposed to then none of this would have happened in the first place. Marvel actually saved my life when I was hiding behind that tree and I owed him somehow.

''Catnip?''Gale says with the knife still in his chest and a black eye.

I sit down next to him and set his head on my lap,''Gale please stay with me…''

''Of course I will Catnip. If it means staying with you-''Gale flinches and coughs up some blood,''then yes.''

I look at the knife stuck in his chest and think about pulling it out,''this might hurt a little…''I slowly take out the knife from his chest and blood runs down from his new cut._ Great another cut to bandage…_

''He was so close to the heart,''Gale says weakly.

''Gale, that`s why you should`ve stayed in the tent,''I tell him softly and stroke his hair.

''And what would have happened if I did?''Gale says with pain in his voice.

''Shh,''I tell him so that the pain of speaking won`t hurt him,''you would have been safe,''I forget all about the duck in my hands and set it to one side so that I won`t get distracted by it.

''No, Marvel would have been all over you. Who knows what else would have happened if I hadn`t arrived in time?''I could hear anger in Gale`s voice and a hint of jealousy in his eyes.

''Are you saying you don`t trust me?''I ask sort of shocked.

''No, I`m saying I didn`t trust him.''

''Gale…are you jealous?''

''Of course I am. Why wouldn`t I be?''

''I see…''

''Do you think I want to let someone get near you?''

I shake my head and smile down at him,''no.''

''Exactly.''

I carefully kiss his lips and pull away,''and do you think I want to let someone get near you?''

''Of course not,''Gale says as his lips curl up into a loving smile.

A silver parachute attached to a small first aid kit falls from the sky and lands next to Gale._Thank you Haymitch!_

I immediately take off the silver parachute from the first aid kit and open it in search of bandages for Gale`s cut.

''_4 _of us left now, right?''Gale asks to make sure.

''Yes,''I carefully bandage his cut and clean the blood on his outfit,''_4 _of us left now…''

''Ok so you and me are _2 _tributes…so which other _2 _tributes are left in the games?''

''The District 2 girl: Clove and the District 5 fox faced girl,''I tell him as I finish bandaging his cut.

''So I`m the only male tribute left?''He asks confused.

''Yes…you killed Marvel, remember?''I say and take out an ice pack for Gale`s black eye.

''Right, so me and you are the only tributes left from the same District,''Gale says as he sits up and turns to face me.

''Yes and only _one_ tribute wins,''I say and hand him the ice pack.

''Catnip-what if we can change that?''Gale says with hope in his voice.

''But how?''I whisper.

''First we need to find out how to kill Clove and the fox faced girl from District 5.''He carefully places the ice pack on his eyes and relaxes a bit.

''And then what?''I ask with curiosity.

''And then when we are the last _2_ tributes left we show them that no matter what we won`t kill each other.''

''That`s a great idea Gale but you know that the Game makers will push us to our death if we do so,''I study the bloody knife from Marvel in my hands and turn my attention back to Gale.

''That`s why we`re both going to help each other survive,''Gale kisses my cheek and holds my hand.

''Alright,''I nod and watch as the sun comes out and the snowing stops.

''It finally stopped snowing,''Gale says.

''Yes, I wonder why.''

Gale sighs,''I wish we could`ve ran away from District 12 and start our own family.''

I think about giving him an annoyed look but don`t,''Gale, we already had this conversation.''

''Yes but imagine what we could be doing right now if we did leave District 12,''Gale starts.

''We`d be dead for sure,''I answer him as I pick on the grass I`m sitting on.

''You don`t know that,''Gale places the ice pack down from his eyes and I could see the black eye start healing thankfully.

''Ok, suppose we did run away, where would we go?''I ask him wanting to know how he would answer to that.

''Anywhere that we can be happy and free,''Is Gale`s only response.

''Then what?''I ask him curious to know more.

''Then we find food that will keep us alive and start our own family,''Gale responds.

''And what about our parents?''I ask him.

''We`ll bring them with us of course,''Gale shrugs.

''Well what about Prim and your 2 little brothers?''I continue.

Gale groans and places the ice pack back on his black eye,''Catnip…we`ll bring them too.''

''What if something goes wrong?''I keep on.

''Like what?''He asks clueless.

''Like if we get caught, if we die, if we run out of food-''

''Then at least we tried and didn`t give up.''

A voice that can only be Claudius Templesmith booms into the arena and me and Gale stand up to hear what he has to say,''May the _4 _tributes left head to the Cornucopia please. Thank you and _good luck_ to you all.''

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and once again if you have any ideas on what should happen just review and let me know.<strong>


	17. The Hunger Games:Finally The Ending?

**Suzanne Collins own everything and sorry if this chapter is too short :P**

* * *

><p><em>Oh no. This is it. Me and Gale are going to die.<em>

''Catnip are you okay?''Gale asks noticing the expression on my face has changed.

I take a deep breath and try not to make a scene. All of this was being captured on camera and I couldn`t show I was weak and fragile,''yes,I`m just wondering what`ll happen now.''

''Well, let`s find out.''

The walk to the Cornucopia seemed as if each step we took was a step closer to our death. A million things were crossing through my mind of what was waiting for us at the Cornucopia. I felt dizzy and my heart was pounding very fast but I held my head as high as I could and tried my very best not to show how I really felt inside. Great thing Gale was holding my hand for balance.

''I think we`re here,''Gale whispered.

There was a huge table in front of us with 4 book bags placed on top of it.1 labeled with the number _2 _on it another one with the number _5 _labeled on it and 2 labeled with the number _12_ on it. I immediately knew which book bag to take from the table and glanced at Gale. Gale didn`t keep his eyes off the 4 book bags and had a knife in his hands, gripping it tightly. My bow and quiver of arrows were behind my back and I had them ready just in case anything happened. The sun was beginning to melt the snow and turning them into big puddles of water under my boots. As it did my forehead and palms began to sweat because of the sun and the scene that was unrolling in front of me. Clove was on the other side of the table and fox face was nowhere to be seen. That's what I thought until fox face grabbed Clove and my book bag! That wasn`t her book bag!

''Hey!''I let go of Gale`s hand and aim my arrow at fox face and shoot but miss. She was too fast for me.

Clove throws one of her knifes at fox face and Gale joins in. Fox face ducks each knife thrown at her and grabs one on the wet ground.

''Gale look out!''I yell at him as fox face throws a knife at him.

Gale ducks the knife and I prepare myself to send fox face another arrow at her but before I can think of it Clove throws a knife at me behind my back and I drop my bow.

''You killed Cato!''Clove screams and throws another knife at me; she seemed like a vindictive person with those big green eyes and long jet black dark hair. But one thing was for sure, I was her number one target. I take both knifes out from my back and I could feel the warm sticky liquid running down my back.

''Clove listen, I know how you feel but I didn`t kill Cato! ''I try to explain to her and notice Gale is now trying to kill fox face.

''I know you did!''Clove threw as many knifes at me as she could and one of them went through my chest and thigh. How many knifes did Clove even carry with her?

I quickly pick up my bow and send an arrow to Clove right through her head. I don`t even show condolence of killing someone this time and look away at the sight. ''_1_ more left to go,''I whisper and carefully take out the knife from my chest and leave the one on my thigh.

I turn my head to where fox face and Gale are fighting and take this as the perfect moment to kill fox face. I take a deep breath in and shoot my arrow at fox face,_''Come on, come on,''_I whisper hoping for the arrow not to miss fox face. Fortunately it didn`t miss and at the same time Gale plunged in a knife in fox face`s back while her attention was on the arrow I shot at her.

Once fox face falls to the ground I don`t believe anything my eyes are seeing. Who knew that killing Clove and fox face wouldn`t be that arduous? That`s it, me and Gale are the only ones left in the 74th Annual Hunger Games.

Me and Gale look at each other at the same time and we wonder what we should do now. I look at fox face`s and Clove`s now-dead body and wipe my fore head. That`s when I notice the melted snow (water) has reached up till my knees. Gale notices too and we both wonder why we didn`t notice this.

I drop all my weapons and look up at the sky,''I won`t kill Gale!''

Gale does the same,''I won`t kill Katniss either. Over my dead body.''

The sky begins to turn an ugly dark color and rain begins to fall from it with thunder and lightning.

''Gale…''Gale runs towards me and hugs me tightly not wanting to let go.

The rain wets my braided hair and the water has now almost reached up to my hips. The game makers are trying to drown us!

''Gale they`re trying to drown us,''I say and burry my face in his chest.

''I know Catnip, I know,''Gale whispers into my ear.

"I don`t know what to do anymore Gale…The Hunger Games is just some kind of sick joke. I`d rather just die from a gunshot than die here in The Hunger Games!"I scream in his chest not caring about the whole Panem hearing me say that.

"Catnip I seriously don`t care if I die right now, right here; at least I`ll die with you by my side."I look up at Gale and he tips my chin up so that he can kiss me. But this kiss was way different than the others he`s given me. This was an _I love you so much than you think I do _kiss. It was so sweet, so soft, so Gale…

''Congratulations to Gale Hawthorne and Katniss Everdeen for being the first two tributes in history to win The Hunger Games!''

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you for reading and feel free to review if you want. You don`t have to it`s just if you want.<strong>


	18. Surprise,Surprise

**DISCLAIMER: Suzanne Collins owns everything. I'm just a person who likes Gale and Katniss together (;**

**Finally! The Hunger Games Movie came out! I`m so excited to see it! And if any of you have seen it yet, how was it?**

**So people have been asking if the story`s over and the answer to that question is NO. The story is not over, there is yet a little more to come and yeah…don`t forget to read what I wrote in the bottom when you`re finished reading this chapter. It's really exciting (:**

* * *

><p>I don`t know what happened afterwards. I couldn`t take all the pressure and had passed out live on tv.I was in Gale`s warm arms and he screamed my name and shook me to wake up but I didn`t…well that`s all I remember. I saw Prim and my mother`s face and quickly reached out for them, wanting never to let go of the two of them. My mother told me she was proud of me and Prim just answered with tears of happiness streaming down her face. I was just happy to see the two of them were safe and alive...was I even <em>alive<em>? I pinched myself just to see if this was just a dream and realized it was.

"Katniss, Katniss…"My eyes flutter open and the sight of Cinna relaxes me.

"Cinna? Where am I?"I can`t help but sit up and touch myself to see if I really am alive and still not dreaming.

"The hospital; you and Gale won The Hunger Games, congratulations."Cinna stands up from his chair and walks over to me.

"But how? I mean it`s only one winner."I feel weak and slump back on the hospital bed as a million questions pop into my head.

"The gamemakers felt pity for the two of you and decided that they couldn`t fight the strong love the two of you shared."A slight smile spread across Cinna`s face and he brushed some hair away from my face.

It took me some time to realize that Gale was nowhere to be seen and panic rushed through my veins as the thought of him not making it popped into my head,"where`s Gale? Is he alright? Did he make it? Is he here too?"The questions came out one after another and this time I jumped off the hospital bed as the anxiety took over but the needles and tubes inserted on many parts of my body pulled me back to a halt.

"He`s fine, he's just…in need of attending."Cinna helps me back on the hospital bed and my heart stops at what he just said.

"_Attending_? What do you mean Cinna, i-is he okay?"I demand as I bite my lip.

"Haymitch and Effie are with him right now. It seems that he`s a bit dehydrated,"Cinna says.

"We`ll he be ok?"That`s all I cared about right now; If Gale was ok then I was ok.

"Yes,"Cinna responds and somehow I believe him when he does.

"Can I see him?"I blurt out, desperate to see how's Gale doing.

"You will just not now. They want to do your reunion live on TV at the ceremony celebrating you and Gale for winning The Hunger Games."

"Oh okay, just promise me that whatever happens to Gale, you`ll tell me."

"You`ll be the first one to know."I calm down at those words and nod.

"You must be hungry,"I nod once again and Cinna hands me a tray of food that was sitting next to his chair.

I dig in the delicious beef stew and take a big bite of the roll of bread that was next to the stew and my mouth waters as I try to shove all the beef stew into my mouth. I didn`t realize I was that hungry until now.

"I'm sorry this happened to you."

I look up from my food and wipe my mouth,"sorry about what Cinna?"

"About you getting chosen to compete in The Hunger Games."Condolence spreads across his face and I shrug it off.

"It`s fine,"I stir the last bit of my stew left and look back at Cinna,"It`s all over now."

"I knew you`d win. Ever since the day I met you I knew that Katniss Everdeen would win the 74th annual Hunger Games, no questions asked."Cinna smiled and I grinned back at him, happy that The Hunger Games was finally over and that I kept my promise to Prim.

"Well, I guess those doctors left you like new, huh?"I arched an eyebrow at Cinna and studied myself.

My skin was flawless-nothing-no marks from The Hunger Games was left on my skin. My nails were also scrubbed clean and polished, all _20_.Cinna handed me a mirror and I studied the creature that was reflecting the clear mirror. The creature couldn`t be me, it wasn`t...the creature I was looking at had not competed in The Hunger Games, hadn`t volunteered for her sister in the reapings and had not fallen in love with her hunting partner.

"A mirror never lies,"says Cinna as he notices how long I`m taking with the mirror.

"This isn`t me, no, no-"

"You`re just denying who you`ve become…one day what we most regret now will be what we most admire and cherish tomorrow."

The words echo in my head and I study the creature once more just to make sure the mirror wasn`t lying to me. I still had my gray eyes; my hair was fixed into a neatly braided braid (something Katniss Everdeen would always do) and I was the girl from District 12 who competed in The Hunger Games and volunteered for her own sister... and I also was the one who fell in love with my hunting partner/best friend-_Gale._ I finally see who`ve I become and hand the mirror to Cinna,"you`re right."

"About what?"Cinna asks but he knows exactly what I`m talking about.

"I`m not saying I`ve become someone else but I`ve matured more."

"That`s the exact answer I was looking for."A nurse dressed in white walks in the room and carefully takes out all of the needles and tubes inserted in my body and tells Cinna I`m fine to go now.

After I`m done changing to some comfortable clothes Cinna brought me we head out and as soon as we do, groups of people with cameras flash their devices at me with the bright, white lights and they blind my eyes.

"Katniss, Katniss, how do you feel right now?"

"Who came up with the nickname, Catnip?"

"Will we be seeing more of you and Gale?"

I`m not used to all of the attention the paparazzi are giving me and just follow Cinna as he puts his arms around my shoulders and leads me out of the crowd of people. We run into the glass elevator once we see it and I quickly punch the button for the door to close. I almost collapse to the elevator floor when we get in and Cinna helps me up.

"Katniss wait!"The paparazzi`s shout at me.

When the doors close shut Cinna heaves a sigh of relief and shakes his head,"not used to all of that attention, right?"

"Not really, I'm not the talkative person at school or the popular one either,"I admit to Cinna.

"Well that`s something you have to get used to now."

The elevator door opens to the 12th floor and all of my prep team greets me with big hugs and kisses.

"Oh Katniss we knew you could do it I mean we saw what you went through but still we had our hopes up for you-and Gale of course!"

They lead me to the dining room where I am greeted with lobster and mashed potatoes and I dig into the rich food but refuse for seconds. It feels weird eating without Haymitch, Effie especially Gale since we were in The Hunger Game together but I finish eating and when I`m done we all head to my room where my prep team immediately goes to work on me. I don`t know where Cinna is the whole time they`re preparing me and I start to remember all of the tributes in The Hunger Games whom I'll never see again. But Rue will always be in some place special in my heart, _Rue was different…_

"Katniss don`t tell me you`re gonna cry now, right after I brought you your dress."Cinna slips the dress over my flawless naked body and I notice the figure the dress gives to my body,"am I supposed to look round?"

Cinna frowns and flattens out the dress for me."I know it`s scary but this was the agreement I could come to with them. You see, since tributes come out hungry and in bones from The Hunger Games, they don't want the audience to see that and make it look as if you`re in good shape-"

"When I`m not,"I interrupt.

"Yes but don`t say that in front of them,"Cinna whispers in my ear and I nod silently at him like Effie taught me.

"What do you think of the dress?"Some "aww`s" escape my prep teams mouth and even I can`t help but keep on staring at myself in the mirror.

"Cinna-I don`t what to say…it`s beautiful."The dress was completely red with sparkles all over it and without straps, but it wasn`t puffy or anything like that it was actually the opposite of puffy. Although the dress made my breasts look big and myself curvy I ignored that fact and ran my fingers along the sparkly dress. The sparkleness of the dress just made you want to stare at it forever and admire its beauty. The soft red makeup on my face made me look even more beautiful by making my gray eyes more noticeable and bigger with the eye liner. I also couldn`t believe how wonderfully long my hair was until now that it was straight and up to my back somewhere.

"The dress is simple but it represents a lot,"Venia, one of the people in my prep team, points out.

"That`s what I was going for,"Cinna agrees.

When we`re done we all take the elevator to the level we trained in and head where we`re supposed to go. I don`t know why but while I`m under the stage waiting to rise up the thought of biting my nails occurs to me. I stop myself from doing so with all the strength in my body and look up so that I won`t get tempted. My prep team worked too hard on my nails so that I could ruin them by biting them. That would reflect poorly on my reputation I just earned in The Hunger Games for being brave. But the thing was, all of sudden I become nervous._ Nervous about what Katniss? You`re the winner of The Hunger Games! You should be happy!_ An annoying voice in my head says that angers me. That's not the feeling someone should get when 22 tributes died in a game that tests how long you can last without dying. Someone had to end The Hunger Games and if someone didn`t end it soon I would have to take action for doing so even if it was a step closer to my death.

"How do you feel sweetheart?"The voice startles me and I almost scream at the sight of Haymitch.

"Sorry kid, I didn't mean to scare you like that."Haymitch rubs my back and I calm myself down.

"Oh, it's just you,"I say.

"What? You aren`t happy to see me?"Haymitch fakes a frown and hugs me.

I awkwardly hug him back and shake my head,"I was just deep in thought, that`s all."

"Well then, in that case can you spin for me so that I can take a good look at you?"Without hesitation I spin once and Haymitch nods at the dress.

"Cinna did a great job."Haymitch doesn't take his eyes off the shimmering fabric and pats my head,"you look good yourself, sweetie."

"Thank you…I think."I am no longer nervous and the urge of biting my nails doesn`t cross my mind anymore.

Haymitch puts an arm around me and whispers in my ear,"remember, you and Gale are madly in love and please, don`t say anything that will upset the whole Panem, got it?"

"Actually there's no need for the whole I`m-madly-in-love-with-Gale-act thing anymore,"I say with a slight shrug.

Haymitch arches an eyebrow at me and studies my face, trying to find out what I`m trying to say,"what do you mean?"

"I mean, I`m **seriously** madly in love with Gale and I don`t need to pretend anymore."

* * *

><p><strong>CLIFFHANGER! What`ll happen next? I don`t know. That is why you guys have the opportunity to ask the questions you want Caesar Flickerman to ask the two love birds during the interview. Hurry up and review if you want YOUR question to be asked!<strong>


	19. Authors Note:Got Questions?

**AUTHORS NOTE: GOT QUESTIONS?**

**So as many of you may or may not know, in the next chapter I will be taking questions from the reviewers and Ceaser Flickerman will be asking those questions to both Katniss and Gale or individually to them, however you would prefer. I wrote this at the bottom of my last chapter but I thought that several of you would ignore it and just read the chapter but I just want to make sure everyone knows this. This is a very special opportunity for you to ask Gale and Katniss some questions you have in mind about them. I'll repeat that,**_** only**_**Katniss and Gale, not the author myself. Although I suggest that the question be appropriate and not rude in any way. Just wanted to make those things clear and please don`t be shy to ask your question if you have one! Thank you for reading and no furthermore, go ahead and ask as many questions as you wish. Have fun!**

**-Sherry**


	20. Its Not For the Audience

**Once again, Suzanne Collins owns everything and I was really surprised at how many questions were asked! So since many questions were repeated, Caesar only asked the question once because it wouldn`t really make sense if he asked the same question two times. Alright, enjoy and I hope this chapter pleases many of you (:**

* * *

><p>All I could hear was the national anthem playing and the audience applauding, under the stage. I wondered what was happening up there. After a few minutes pass the plate I`m standing on rises me up to the stage and the applauding gets louder and louder. I can almost see Gale but he`s too far away from me. Although I can see the outfit he`s wearing; a black tie and shirt, red suit and red pants, black shoes and his hair looked like it was blow-dried with grease on it. Because of Gale`s dark hair you can almost see it shine from my distance but it`s probably because of the grease on it.<p>

He looks beautiful from where I`m standing and I can`t help but yell out his name so that he can notice me,"Gale!"I wave at him and he finally notices me with a happy expression on his face. The expression was new and warm and welcoming. It was like he was relieved to see me for once in his life, to know that I`m safe and not dead. I felt the same way.

"Catnip!"Gale runs towards me and pulls me into a deep,warm embrace.

I don`t even care if the whole Panem is watching this right now, so I whisper in Gale`s ear,"I was so worried about you Gale…I heard that you were dehydrated but that`s all Cinna told me, are you ok now though?"

"Yes,but all I care about is you right now,"Gale says affectionately.

I could`ve sworn I heard the whole Panem say "aww"in my ears and blushed a little,"me too."

"Why don`t you two bring that romance over here?"It was Caesar Flickerman and he had a wide grin on his face.

"Remember Catnip, you don`t have to be nervous or anything. Just say the truth when answering his questions,"Gale holds out his hand so that I can take it and I lace my fingers with his.

Last year in the 73rd Annual Hunger Games there was no live audience, just cameras to record the event, although this year there was a live audience and much more cameras than last year to record this event. I didn`t understand the reason why there was this change but I shook it off and sat down on the velvet love seat with Gale.

"I`m kind of squished,"I whisper to Gale as I try to sit in a comfortable position.

Gale thinks about this for a minute and stands up,"you can sit on my lap and I`ll wrap my arms around you."

I nod at him and let Gale sit down first .When he does, I kick off my flats and curl up next to him with my face on his chest. Gale wraps his arms around me and pulls me closer to him. The position I`m in feels comfortable and I close my eyes for a moment but open it back when a cameraman finishes counting until he gets to one.

"Hello, hello!"Screams Caesar Flickerman over the clapping audience. Cameras flash at me and Gale and I give them a warm smile.

When the clapping begins to stop and you can hear Caesar better he says,"we are here with Gale Hawthorne and Katniss Everdeen, the two winners of the 74th Annual Hunger Games!"More clapping, more camera flashing and more smiling occurs.

"Okay, okay, back to business,"Caesar turns to look at us and the clapping from the audience stops."How do you two feel right now?"

"Oh trust me Caesar, there are no words to describe that right now,"I quickly blurt out.

The audience let out a little laugh at my comment and Gale looks at me with a small smile,"how about relieved?"

"Ah, yes, relieved sounds like a good word. Do you agree Katniss?"Caesar asks me.

"Well, relieved is just one word. There are many more words than that,"I add.

"Is _love_ one of them?"Caesar asks with curiosity.

"Yes, I think so,"I agree.

"Love is a very strong word. Now tell me, Katniss, did you fall in love with Gale before or after The Hunger Games?"

What? What did he just ask me? I wasn`t paying attention to the question. Instead I was thinking of all of the other tributes who would have to participate in The Hunger Games next year, the year after, the year after that and the year after that one…

"Umm, what do you mean?"I ask Caesar, hoping that he didn`t notice that I had lost him.

"I mean, how long have you been in love with Gale? When you arrived here or back in District 12?"Caesar repeats for me in different words.

"Oh that, umm…"The problem was that I didn`t know myself.

"Well I don`t know about you Katniss but I sure was fully convinced that you were in love with Gale when the two of you first kissed after the fire."It`s times like these that I`m happy to have Caesar around to help me out.

"Oh yes! That's it! I can`t believe I forgot that,"I answer Caesar.

"Yes, well, how about you Gale? Was Katniss your only true love or were there others-I mean considering a handsome young man like you I`d think a lot of girls would fall for you wherever you went."Sighs erupt from the audience when Caesar finishes and I don`t know whether to be jealous or not.

"There`s a very simple answer to that,"the audience awaits to hear what Gale has to say and you can almost hear a drop of water at how silent it is,"which is, no, Katniss was my only true love,"Gale admits as he softly kisses my cheek.

The audience goes crazy and several,"aww`s"constantly keep on escaping from people`s mouths.

"That is very sweet!"Caesar smiles at the two of us and stands up from his chair.

The audience becomes silent as he stands up from his chair and we wait for what he has to say,"so as the two of you may have noticed, we have a live audience right now,"Caesar walks towards us with a warm smile and says,"now you two may be wondering: why is there a live audience? Well the answer to that is because we will be taking questions from the live audience and they will be asking those questions to the two of you or individually."

No wonder we had a live audience. It's the first time in history that there are two winners and they wanted to make sure this was a big deal.

"Alright then, let's do this,"Gale says.

"Great, now… let's see who wants to be the first lucky person to ask a question."The whole audience raises their hands and Caesar points at a young teenage girl with caramel skin and dark black hair with a shirt that reads_:"Katniss:The Girl on Fire" _I am flabbergasted of her shirt and someone hands the girl a microphone for her to speak,"first of all, hi! I just love the two of you!"She clears her throat and calms down a bit,"umm okay so my question for the two of you is, how long have you two known each other and how did the two of you meet?"

"That`s an easy one,"I say with my own microphone in one hand,"we`ve known each other for 4 years, ever since I was 12."

"I was 14 when I met Catnip and she was a skinny 12 year old. Although, we always got into fights when it came to food and hunting…"Gale says as he looks down at me. We were still in the same position that we were in the beginning but I didn't mind, the position felt comfortable.

The girl laughs at Gale and nods,"okay and one last question, how did you two fall in love and get together?"

"I think Gale should answer this one,"I smile at Gale from my position and he nods at me.

"Well, when we kissed we both realized that we wanted to be more than hunting partners or best friends,"answers Gale.

"That`s so sweet, you two make a very cute couple!Alright, thank you for answering my question."

Caesar rubs his hands together and looks over the audience,"who wants to be next?"Once again the whole audience raises their hands and Caesar picks a young girl about the age of Prim and also with black hair,"you."

The young girl doesn`t hesitate before taking the microphone and asks,"okay so my first question is for Gale, how did you give Katniss that nickname?"

"You mean Catnip?"The young girl nods at Gale."Well when we first met I asked her what was her name and she answered in a very low voice that I couldn`t hear. So I just guessed her name was Catnip by the way she said her name and got used to calling her like that. But I don`t think Katniss really minds if I call her that, right Catnip?"

"At first I was kind of annoyed at the name but I like it now,"I nodded both at Gale and the young girl.

"That`s so cute! Alright so my last question is, when did the two of you start hunting?"The young girl asked.

Gale hands me the microphone we`re both sharing and I say,"I started hunting at a very young age with my father. He's actually the one who taught me when I was little."

"I also started hunting at a young age and developed a love for traps and snares while doing so. Eventually me and Katniss teamed up and agreed to help each other out when it came to hunting,"responds Gale.

"Cool, thanks!" The microphone is taken away from the young girl and Caesar sits back down.

"Well, how did you two like answering questions from the crowd?"Caesar asks us.

"Great,"me and Gale say simultaneously.

"We`d continue doing so but we`ve received questions from others who have been waiting longer than the crowd to ask you guys questions too, sorry," Caesar says apologetically.

I`m a little happy in the inside but I shake my head,"It`s fine with us."

Gale nods and Caesar takes out a piece of paper,"alright, ready for more questions?"

Once again we nod and Caesar reads aloud the question,"what do the two of you plan of doing when you guys return to District 12?"

Me and Gale look at each other as if analyzing the question between us. The question was simple but I had about a thousand answers to it. However, I did know what would be the first thing I was going to do when I got there, which was: give my mother and Prim a big hug, that is, if they are even alive.

Gale goes first,"make sure me and Catnip`s family is safe and alive."

"How loyal of you Gale; have you always been this loyal when it comes to family, whether it being yours or not?"The phrasing of the question sounds confusing but I understand what Caesar`s trying to ask.

"Yes,"I say immideately, before Gale can answer that."He`s always been very helpful when my family`s facing troubles relating to food and money; Gale`s always been there for me when I most needed him."True? Yes.

"So has Catnip, my mother respects her a lot just like if she`s part of the family."Gale takes my hand and squeezes it tightly so that I can know he doesn`t want to be the only one on the spot light.

"So let`s see, the two of you plan of making sure your families are well attended when the two of you return to District 12?"Caesar makes sure.

"Yes,"we say simultaneously again.

"Great, now, moving on to the next question: how was life before the 74th Annual Hunger Games?"It may sound as if Caesar wants to get over with the questions but he actually doesn`t because he smiles at us for each question he asks and it doesn`t seem like a forced one.

"Life before The Hunger Games was rather complicated,"Gale answers.

"Very. Both me and Gale`s dad died in a mine explosion and the two of us were left to protect our family and feed them. As a result of this, my mom was in a deep depression and I was the one who had to take charge and do the work now. Prim was too young and fragile and my mom was too saddened by my dad`s demise to do anything. Thankfully, I learned one or few things from my dad and used what I had learned from him for real life situations, such as economy and hunting."I take a deep breath and realize I have told a chunk of my life to the whole Panem...Did I say a little too much?

"Katniss, you sound like a very determined and hard working person. When you see something wrong you fix it and don`t let someone else go and fix it themselves after years later. If I were to say so myself, Gale, you've got quite the girlfriend there, young man."Caesar elbows Gale and Gale`s cheeks turn bright red.

"Aren`t I lucky?"Gale hugs me closer and this time he lays a soft kiss on my lips. This time it's my turn to blush and I cover my cheeks with both hands. I can see the crowd smiling and grinning at me and my blush turns from light pink to bright red.

"It`s amazing to know that two best friends that competed in the Hunger Games ended up as more than just hunting partners, which leads me to my next question: what is the happiest memory the two of you share?"

My mind races back to the time when me and Gale first kissed in The Hunger Games and I don`t bother to give it one more thought before I blurt out,"the kiss."

And that did it. The audience went crazy and even more "aww" than last time occurred.

"Ha-ha, well Katniss, the two of you have shared more than one kiss. Can you be more specific of which kiss?"

"Oh, the first one of course,"I say blushing.

"What about the one in the Opening Ceremonies?"Caesar questions me.

"Well that was just a kiss in the cheek, however the one me and Gale shared in The Hunger Games was the best one,"I admit.

Gale just looks at me and smiles,"agreed."

A few of the audience laugh and Caesar just shakes his head,"well, let's not get too personal."More laughter erupts from the audience but Caesar shakes his head once again and laughs with them too,"I`m kidding! There's no need to hide anything."

"Are you sure about that Caesar? I mean, you could be hiding anything under that blue wig of yours."This time I laugh and now the whole audience has joined in too.

Caesar doesn`t even look offended one bit and laughs with everyone else."If I could afford hair like yours, Gale, I would. Trust me."This time, Gale laughs and offers Caesar a small shrug.

"Alright already, no more hurtful comments about my wig."

"I`ll try my best,"Gale looks down at me and we both laugh together.

"Oh look here, this question is for you Gale; when did you first know you were in love with Katniss?"

_So many questions relating to love_, I think to myself.

"I actually think it was love at first sight. As stupid as that sounds, I think I fell in love with Catnip the first time I met her. She was just so strong, so determined, so _different_…"Gale looks at me like I`m his prized possession and I have to look away from him just so that I won`t blush once again.

"Ah, I see, and how long have you known about this, Katniss?"

"Ever since Gale confessed his feelings for me."That was 100% true, it was in the interviews and Gale admitted that he had feelings for me and me only.

"And how did you feel when he did so?"

"Oh, umm, surprised, "I say not even sure myself. The truth is I had mixed feelings when Gale admitted his feelings for me. There was confusion, surprise, amazement and unsureness.

"This gets me into my next question, which is: before the games, what would you describe your relationship as? Were you just hunting partners, best friends, or _more_?"Caesar puts emphasis on the _more _word and looks back at me.

"Well, I suppose nothing romantic that I know of was going on between us before The Hunger Games had begun and I had volunteered for Prim. Me and Gale were just hunting partners and best friends,"I say honestly, without hiding anything.

"Gale, any comments about that?"Caesar asks and I could see Gale wanting to hold back something,"nope."

"Alright then, this question`s for you Gale: what would you do if Katniss never made it home, but rather died in the arena?"

"I honestly would have died with her,"Gale responds in a serious tone.

"You would do that for her?"Caesar asks him.

"Yes, I don`t know how else I would have lived without her."

"Ah yes, I can see you`re the romantic type, Gale."Some of the audience let out some dreamy sighs and Gale`s cheeks turn bright red.

"Alright, last question of the day asks: how do you two feel about seeing each other again?"

"I`m very happy to see that Gale`s alright and alive,"I say.

"How about you Gale?"

"Also happy, in fact, I wrote a poem for Catnip."Gale takes out a piece of paper from his pocket with neat hand writing on it and begins to read it aloud.

"_Nothing can compare to those beautiful gray eyes_

_Just look at them, the way that they shine_

_They make the sun rise when it`s tired_

_And cools everything up when there is fire_

_When I look at them, they make my heart melt _

_You always knew just how I felt_

_It`s amazing how just one girl can make me feel_

_When you touch me you help me heal_

_And suddenly everything feels so real_."

"Gale you didn`t have to-"I begin and my cheeks start to turn light pink.

"But I did,"Gale takes my hand and kisses it and begins reading another poem.

"_Is it the way your lips feel on mine?_

_Is it the way your eyes shine so bright?_

_Is it the way you keep my life on the line?_

_Is it the way you make the sun arise?_

_Is it the way you`re full of many surprises?_

_Is it the way we both earn several prizes?_

_Is it the way I write poems for you?_

_Is it the way you cheer me up when I am feeling blue?_

_Or maybe it's just the way you say, 'I love you too'_"

I don`t know what to say and look down at my hands. Gale wrote a poem for _me?_ I feel bad for the fact that I didn`t write a poem for him and bite my lip.

"Wow Gale, since when did you start writing poems?"Caesar asks, with surprise in his tone.

"I don`t know. I guess it just came to me,"Gale puts the piece of paper back in his pocket and smiles.

"Katniss, you seem a bit speechless. Can you tell us how you feel about Gale`s poem?"

"I-I don`t know what to say...I love it,"my eyes begin to water but I hold back my tears.

"In my opinion, the poem was very well written and romantic,"Caesar says.

"Thank you Caesar.I`ll be sure to make you one later." The whole audience begins to laugh and Caesar laughs as well too.

"Well, thank you, Katniss and Gale for coming here and we`ll see you next time. Ladies and gentle men let`s give a round of applause to Katniss Everdeen: the girl on fire and Gale Hawthorne: the boy with the snares!"

"The boy with the snares," that`s a new one.

* * *

><p><strong>Thank you so much for reading and it`s very sad to say that this is the last chapter of the story): Although, the next chapter will be somewhat related to the story but I won`t say what the next chapter will be about…Again, thank you so much for reading and review to let me know what you thought of this LONG chapter (;<strong>


	21. Answers!

**Hello guys, long time no see! So this is just an answer to many questions you guys have had and what`s coming up & I hope many of you are excited because I really am (:**

* * *

><p><strong>Frequently Asked QuestionsThings Readers Want To Know:**

**Are you going to write a sequel to Someone Unexpected?**

_Yes, it`s called Realization and it`s already posted. Go check it out!_

**What`s taken you so long?**

_I`ve been very busy working on so many things but whenever I have spare time I`ll update Realization._

**What`s going to happen in **_**Realization**_**?**

_I won`t give spoilers but I will say Gale and Katniss face their fears and try to change things._

**Are you Suzanne Collins?**

_No… but Suzanne's a better writer than me and she`s amazing._

**Are you going to continue with **_**Someone Unexpected?**_

_No, I`m moving on now and I remember I said I was going to post a chapter relating to this story but I can`t find it but if I do I`ll post it and that`ll be the last chapter._

**Katniss and Peeta or Katniss and Gale?**

_Seriously? I'm a Katniss and Gale shipper!_

* * *

><p><strong>Frequently Made Comments:<strong>

**Wait a second…that`s not true, that`s inaccurate!**

_I try to be as accurate as possible with the book but sometimes I change things because I want my story to be different than The Hunger Games. I also use the book when I`m writing the story so it`s not a really big deal.  
><em>

**Your story has many mistakes**

_Like everyone else, I`m not perfect and Someone Unexpected was one of my first Hunger Games story so of course it wasn`t perfect but I`ve learned from my mistakes and have fixed them._

**Your writing is so much like Suzanne Collins!**

_Thank you! I really appreciate it._

**You should definitely write a second part to **_**Someone Unexpected!**_

_I`m working on it right now! If you wanna read it it`s called: Realization and it can be found on my profile._

* * *

><p><strong>I hope this answers many of your questions and I can`t wait to continue on with the story! (=<strong>


End file.
